Are You a DEI Hire?

If you've been paying attention to politics lately—or just mildly conscious—then you've likely heard the comments directed at Kamala Harris and other women calling them the "DEI hire".

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn) and Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo) both referred to Kamala Harris as the "DEI Hire". The same term was used to refer to the Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, who has just stepped down from her role. Earlier this month, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) called White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre a “discredited DEI hire.”

All of these women have decades of service, experience, and leadership in their fields, so the term "DEI hire" does not apply.

What is a DEI hire?

It refers to an individual who was hired through a process that emphasizes Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) principles. This process ensures that all candidates, regardless of their background, have an equal opportunity to compete for a job.

Make no mistake about it—when someone calls someone else a "DEI hire", it's meant to be a derogatory gender and/or racial slur. The message that it sends is that a woman or person of color could NOT have gotten the job based on their qualifiations.

These comments are incredibly insulting. Perhaps you've experienced this yourself?

Another message that it sends is that only white men are deserving of certain roles. We hear most of these attacks when coveted, powerful, decision-making leadership positions are at stake.

This slur is a type of bias called a microaggression.

What are Microaggressions?

They are verbal, behavioral and environmental indignities that communicate hostile, derogatory or negative slights and insults to a target person or group. In other words, they are subtle forms of interpersonal discrimination.

In the case of Kamala Harris, it's not so subtle and is more of a macroaggression.

She is a former U.S. Senator and Attorney General of California, Vice President to Joe Biden, and the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee for President. She has more than proven herself and is more than qualified.

Minimizing her accomplishments by calling her a "DEI hire" is not only disrespectful but shameful. Same goes with any other woman or person of color.

The week that Joe Biden stepped down, I heard reporters ask people if they felt that Kamala Harris was ready to be President. In nearly every person, there was a hesitation before they answered.

Why is it that when asked if women are ready for leadership roles, we pause?

It's because when people think of a leader, we still envision men. This is called agentic leader beliefs. Society has produced the expectation that typically male traits (such as competitiveness, confidence, and assertiveness) are synonymous with leader traits. And that typically female traits (such as empathy, collaboration, and interpersonal relationships) are not leader-like.

This belief, of course, is based purely in bias. Our leaders should have a range of traits and data has shown that the best leaders have a mix of gender-based traits.

4 Strategies to Minimize Biases/Microaggressions

Here are 4 things we can do to check our gender or racial biases, so that we don't offend or minimize deserving and qualified individuals.

First, ask yourself if the biases you are experiencing are consistent with your

personal values.

We all have biases that have been reinforced our entire lives. So when you catch yourself having biased thoughts about another's race, for example, you should question it to interrupt your thinking. Is this consistent with the person you want to be?

Second, actively call out bias each time you see it. This is the best way to quickly quash an off-handed microaggression like "DEI hire".

Third, practice empathy, active listening, and humility. It's hard to lob microaggressions if we're genuinely trying to understand someone else's perspective.

Fourth, seek out others different from you because of the Familiarity-Trust-Opportunity relationship. The more we know someone, we begin to trust them. Once we trust someone, we want to help them by providing opportunities, such as introductions, referrals, and recommendations (and political endorsements).

Parting Thoughts

Comments like "DEI hire" and anti-DEI initiatives have intensified over the last year—starting with the Supreme Court's decision to ban affirmative action in college admissions last June. You can read more about the reasons for the DEI pushback/pullback in my last Taylor Swift themed newsletter called "Is DEI Out of the Woods?"

This backlash is meant to discredit the accomplishments of women and people of color who are trying to make inroads in institutions that were previously bastions of white male power. And as mentioned above, implies that they can only succeed when they are needed to fill quotas, and not because of merit, hard work or talent.

Here are key questions to consider:

Can we change how we envision a leader? How many qualified female candidates is it going to take before the first one breaks through? Will we have a female President in our lifetime?

Fear, ignorance, insecurity, hate, and bias are at the root of these comments. It's time that we set these aside so that deserving and qualified women are given the opportunity to make an impact.

-Dr. Shawn Andrews

P.S. If you are interested in these topics (and seeing me play the drums) you might be interested in my TEDxUCIrvine talk, Debunking Bias: Perceptions of Male and Female Leaders.