Op-ed views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author.

America is losing its head over diversity. The dictionary definition of diversity is the political and social policy of encouraging tolerance for people of different backgrounds. Unfortunately, the Left has distorted its meaning. To progressives, diversity means that we must give special privileges to certain protected classes of people … and they never let us forget it. “Sometimes,” said black economist Thomas Sowell, “it seems as if ‘diversity’ is going to replace ‘the’ as the most often used word in the English language.”

The Left’s version of diversity goes far beyond tolerance. It attempts to divide Americans between alleged oppressors — heterosexual, white, Christian males — and “victimized” minorities and women. Its purpose is to create division and hatred. Instead of making everyone feel they are part of a unified American social structure, diversity plays into the leftist strategy of “divide and conquer.” Diversity, says Mark Levin in Ameritopia, is bringing about the “balkanization” of society.

By implying intolerance of Caucasians, diversity is discriminatory and exclusionary. Affording special privileges to minorities is the Left’s way of marginalizing white people. “Diversity in today’s America,” says Scott Greer in No Campus for White Men, “simply means having fewer whites around.” Diversity means that minorities get control over the system at the expense of the white majority. This is what I call the “tyranny of the minority.”

Diversity is destroying the critical American value known as meritocracy. Meritocracy and diversity are opposites. Instead of promoting people based on competence, advocates for diversity want promotions to be based on race and gender. Heather Mac Donald, author of The War on Cops, has warned about the consequences of this trend. Countries like China and Russia, she said, are meritocracies. When you are a scientist in China, they don’t give a damn about your race or gender. If the U.S. falls prey to identity politics, we will never be able to compete on the world stage. Within 20 years, we could easily turn into a third-world country.

Evidence of the trend is everywhere. United Airlines has announced that 50 percent of all new pilots will be chosen from among minorities and women. At 30,000 feet, who wants an affirmative action pilot sitting in the cockpit? President Biden has delivered on his promise that the next Supreme Court justice will be black and a woman. Colleges and universities are using a quota system for admission based on race. Where you have obedience to diversity in academia, there is no diversity of thought. People who demand diversity are against viewpoint diversity, also known as free speech.

Show business has gone full tilt for diversity. The Walt Disney Company has announced that 50 percent of Disney characters will be LGBTQ or minorities. Eligibility for an Academy Award will no longer be based on merit. Nominees for “best picture” must contain minority themes and have a quota of minorities and women in both cast and crew. Past Oscar winners such as “On the Waterfront,” “Patton,” and “Lawrence of Arabia” would no longer qualify for an award under the new rules.

The military is losing its combat readiness as the Biden administration demands the inclusion of women in first-line combat units despite evidence that unit effectiveness will be negatively impacted. The majority of top-25 medical schools are supporting Critical Race Theory. This means that the physician performing your brain surgery could be the product of affirmative action.

The government is using diversity to encroach on individual rights and privileges. For example, a new California law mandates that publicly traded companies must include people from “underrepresented communities” on their boards. Do we really want Uncle Sam imposing racial and gender quotas on the business community? The good news is that a Los Angeles court has just ruled the law unconstitutional.

America’s obsession with diversity makes little sense in view of the tremendous progress that the nation has made in the half-century since the civil rights movement of the 1960s. “The oppression of black Americans is over with,” said black author Shelby Steele. “The truth of the matter is, blacks have never been less oppressed than they are today. You will be far more likely to receive racial preferences than to suffer racial discrimination.”

The bitter allegations of Critical Race Theory and Black Lives Matter cannot be justified. “In Baltimore, where Freddie Gray died,” said black talk radio host Larry Elder, “the majority of the city council is black, the top cop is black, the number two cop is black, the majority of the command staff is black, the mayor is black, the AG is black, and yet here we are talking about racism. It’s absurd.”

“America is not a racist country,” agreed black political activist Candace Owens. “Anyone claiming otherwise has a vested interest in keeping us divided. The easiest way to maintain power over any group is to keep those within it at war with one another.”

In addition to fomenting racial strife, diversity encourages minorities not to take responsibility for their own lives. This is part of the Democratic Party’s plan to make as many people as possible dependent on government handouts. Entitlements foster a victim mentality that places the blame on whites. “Victimhood has become a mental plague on black America,” says Candace Owens.

Giving special treatment to any one group is in violation of the equal protection clause. It is also the worst kind of racism. Blaming current social problems on alleged white oppression heightens racial tensions and keeps the country divided. That seems to be what the Democrats want. The preoccupation with race and gender only makes it worse for blacks, whites, and everybody else.

Ed Brodow is a conservative political commentator, negotiation expert, and author of eight books including Tyranny of the Minority: How the Left is Destroying America. He is a former US Marine officer, Fortune 500 sales executive, and Hollywood movie actor.

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Ed Brodow

Ed Brodow, is a conservative political commentator and author of THE WAR ON WHITES: How Hating White People Became the New National Sport.

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