The DEI-ification Of Disaster Relief Is A National Embarrassment

Days after the destruction of Hurricane Helene, with more than a hundred Americans dead and billions worth of damage done to life and livelihood, the government tasked with aiding disaster victims has fallen victim to diversity-driven mission drift.

As the backlash against DEI grows in the corporate and academic space, we’re beginning to see a tactical pattern: Institutional trends often aren’t created by big headlines, but by quiet acquiescence to under-the-radar practices that can, over years, lead to incredibly damaging mission drift. Centrality of mission matters for a college, and it matters even more for a business. But it arguably matters most of all when it comes to dealing with natural disasters threatening tens of billions of dollars worth of damage to the American people. And yet, it’s in this area that DEI-esque mission drift has occurred most blatantly.