The dangers of DEI and ESG | Wokeism#17

Recently, sports apparel giant Nike’s ad featured Dylan Mulvaney, a male who identifies as a female (transgender woman) wearing a sports bra. The company was hailed for its diversity and inclusivity for paying Dylan to be its brand ambassador on one hand, while it received criticism from those who do not subscribe to the idea of a male wearing a women-specific sports bra on the other.

 

 

 

The brand defended its partnership with Dylan and responded to the so-called ‘transphobic’ backlash it received through a statement on its Instagram handle saying, “You are an essential component to the success of your community! We welcome comments that contribute to a positive and constructive discussion: Be kind, be inclusive, and encourage each other. Hate speech, bullying, or other behaviors that are not in the spirit of a diverse and inclusive community will be deleted”. A sane person would ask a question as to who gave these capitalists the responsibility of being the torchbearers of inclusiveness, equality, and whatnot. The answer is ESG i.e. Environmental-Social-Governance or the DEI i.e. Diversity-Equity-Inclusion ratings and policies. These concepts focus on the responsibility of the corporates to be aware of environmental and social issues and design policies to make the workplace better for socially diverse and equal to all races, genders, etc.

 

Also Read: Silence of the Vocal | Wokeism#15 

 

Let us look at the recent history of how these woke ideas related to LGBTQ+, queer activism, racial activism, and pseudo-climate change activism (It is real by the way. Not denying it) entered the corporate arena in the US and Europe. In 2008, the mortgage crisis resulted in the near collapse of the banking system in the U.S. This also made the American public skeptical about capitalism, the most important driver of the economic strength of the USA. The Leftists were quick to grab the opportunity and blamed the collapse and the resultant poverty and economic instability on the White patriarchy. It simply means the leftists brought in the Critical Race Theory which says that the systems in the US are inherently racist. Wall Street needed a face-saving strategy to erase the doubts over capitalism from the minds of the citizens. The corporates of Wall Street were offered a solution to ‘Woke’ up from all this. This gave birth to the now prevalent concepts of ESG and DEI mentioned above.

 

Also Read: TISS, Ambedkar, and Brahminical Patriarchy 

 

To hide behind the systemic financial risk, the corporates had to take refuge in the woke ideas of systemic racism and say the right things which the leftists believed to be right in order to save their face. These corporates then appointed people on its board who ‘cared’ for climate change, who ‘cared’ for the LGBTQ+, and who ‘cared’ for the Black people. Of course, these things were never done for free. The activist organizations were paid millions of dollars to make these corporates environmentally aware, to practice diversity and inclusion by becoming sensitive towards the LGBTQ+ community, and accept systemic racism against the Blacks.

 

Also Read: Gender Neutral toilets, new 'Loo'nacy? | Wokeism#13 

 

Until 2016, things went very smoothly. But the 2016 Presidential elections and the victory of Donald Trump were a big shock to the Left. This was also the time when tech companies were booming and social media had become an effective tool in election campaigns. The Leftists blamed this ‘Trump victory crisis’ on the tech companies i.e. Silicon Valley this time. The old bad guys of Wall Street were replaced by the new bad guys of Silicon Valley. The leftists then shifted their focus on Silicon Valley and the tech companies were offered to keep the monopoly if they censored the speeches of the political opponents of the Left so that the next election would go the way these people wanted to go.

 

Also Read: Trans Athletes and a threat to Women's sports | Wokeism#12 

 

After the pandemic of Covid-19 and the tragic death of George Floyd and protests, arson, and violence thereafter, nearly the majority of corporate America now has to adopt woke policies of ESG and DEI which becomes a win-win situation for the corporates and also the activist organizations. In this next part, we will see examples of some of the Woke policies of the corporates and how these policies are entering the Indian corporates.

To be continued……