Flying the Flag of DEI Matters More Than Ever
Across the nation, we are seeing corporations let go of the DEI officers, major university donors withholding donations due to DEI practices, and programs such as the Small Business Administration’s 8A program - created in 1978 with the aim of supporting socially and economically disadvantaged businesses - no longer allowing the presumption of social disadvantage for historically marginalized racial groups. I too have encountered DEI opponents a number of times in my career. In my first year of business, an economic development-focused non-profit reached out to me with interest in contracting with my firm, but let me know that some of the Commissioners in the county would be firmly opposed to doing so solely based on the name of my firm. I responded that it probably wasn’t a good fit. And we moved on.
As the DEI backlash continues to unfold, I feel compelled to speak up and pledge my unfettered commitment to centering my work around these three pillars.
In January 2021, I registered my business with the Commonwealth of PA under the name Equitable Cities Consulting. I did so with great intention based on my firsthand experience in shaping economic development policy and programming in high poverty environments throughout my career. When I launched my firm, it was on the heels of 2020, a year that brought seismic shifts to nearly every facet of our lives, and laid bare the pervasive inequities that I had often read about in economic graphics and statistics and witnessed in my own city. I have long considered poverty reduction to be one of the tantamount goals of economic development, in addition to other key performance indicators, such as growth in jobs, companies, and gross domestic product. And yet, several years before the pandemic hit, I was already starting to question why some cities were seeing success with the key performance indicators related to growth, but not seeing a similar reduction in poverty. The notion of rising tides lifting all boats was not playing out. But the greater realization for me was when Philadelphia’s stubborn poverty rate did finally start to see a decline after several years of consistent growth in jobs, yet the poverty rate for Black and Hispanic residents remained mostly unchanged and the gap had widened. Philadelphia is no anomaly when it comes to racial wealth gaps. As this Brookings chart illustrates, at a national level, even as Black wealth has grown, so too has the racial wealth gap.
As unfortunate as the persistent racial wealth and economic opportunity gaps are, their existence should hardly be a surprise. From slavery, to Jim Crow laws, to redlining and urban renewal, our country has a history of establishing and sanctioning policies and practices that created the conditions of inequality that we see today. And we must be honest with ourselves that we have yet to bring sufficient resources, programs and policies to bear to meaningfully address centuries of generational trauma, poverty and disenfranchisement. This is why, when I hear economic development practitioners and my colleagues in the field tell me that in many places, those doing this work can’t even say the words diversity, equity, and inclusion, I am left aghast. This isn’t the first time that explicit efforts to address racial inequities have been challenged, but the widespread effort to prohibit the use of these commonplace words, signifies the mounting barriers that professionals committed to such moral imperatives will have to overcome.
Economic development policy and programs in areas such as entrepreneurship, innovation, workforce development, business growth, and neighborhood and community development are critical to the health of our economy. But more importantly, targeted economic development investments in the people and places that have been subject to discrimination and marginalization by our own government are essential to reversing centuries of racist and destructive practices and reducing the stark wealth gap featured in the chart published by the Pew Charitable Trusts. As the venerable author, Maya Angelou once wrote, “If it is true that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, isn't it also true a society is only as healthy as its sickest citizen and only as wealthy as its most deprived?”
To say, in 2024, that diversity, equity, and inclusion are no longer needed or unfair, and even worse - to attempt to eradicate such values - is to ignore the bare facts about ongoing racial disparities, such as those highlighted in two U.S. government-created graphics below.:
US Department of Labor. Earning Disparities by Race and Ethnicity
U.S. Department of the Treasury. Post 5: Racial Differences in Educational Experiences and Attainment
When I left the City of Philadelphia to start my firm my intention was to become a thought leader in equitable economic development and a partner to economic development practitioners seeking to shape more inclusive and equitable economies in their communities. I have learned a great deal more about this work since starting my firm and have been inspired by the economic development leaders with whom I have had the opportunity to partner.
The headwinds confronting equity work have only motivated me to step up my efforts and do more. Over the coming months, I will be rolling out new resources for practitioners who want to center their efforts around equitable economic development. These resources will be complemented by my consulting, coaching and thought partnership.
As I shape these efforts, I am eager to engage with like-minded practitioners in communities across the U.S. and the globe to gain insights and feedback about the types of resources that they are most interested in accessing in order to catalyze equitable and inclusive growth. Please email me at sylvie@equitablecitiesconsulting.com if you’d like to discuss more!