Families mourned, investigators sought answers, and Americans turned to leaders for support as they witnessed the first major U.S. commercial airliner crash in 16 years. On Jan. 29, American Airlines Flight 5342 was preparing to land at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when it collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter, resulting in the deaths of 67 people. 

But as the nation grieved, President Donald Trump, inaugurated just nine days earlier, stated during a White House press briefing that, “The FAA diversity push includes focus on hiring people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities,” implying that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs were to blame for the crash. 

Trump’s statement to the entire nation was insulting to the crash’s victims and their families, and was an attack on marginalized peoples who benefit from DEI programs, programs that are an essential part of what makes America great.

DEI programs protect Americans of all walks of life — people of color, women, veterans, the disabled, and members of the LGTBQ+, for instance — from discrimination in the workplace and to ensure equal opportunities for all. 

The origins of DEI are in the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and ’60s. The Civil Rights Act, signed into law in 1964, “prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin.” As result, in the past 61 years, many underserved groups have had opportunities that they didn’t have prior to the efforts of those who fought so hard for a more inclusive society, and are protected, by law, against bigots and racists.  

But some, like Trump, claim that DEI programs are detrimental as they, according to him, prioritize diversity over “a great brain, a great power of the brain.” When asked during the Jan. 30 briefing if diversity hiring caused the crash, Trump replied, “It just could have been.” 

Trump’s response furthers the myth that a “DEI hire” is someone who is believed to be hired only because they fit a diversity quota, rather than through skill and experience. This promotes the idea that people of color (POC) and other groups are incapable of getting these opportunities based on talent and merit. In reality, DEI programs were created to allow these groups the opportunity to thrive and succeed in positions where they had previously been discriminated against.

In the first days of his presidency, Trump signed an executive order banning DEI policies. His goal, he asserted in his Jan. 20 inauguration speech, is to create a “color-blind and merit based” society. 

Following his lead, some corporations, including Target, have begun removing their DEI-friendly policies; Google removed all cultural holidays and months, including Pride Month, Black History Month, and Indigenous People’s Month, among others, from its Calendar app; and on Jan. 23, the U.S. Department of Education announced that it was “[taking] action to eliminate harmful Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.” 

The dismantling of DEI initiatives deprives America of the very essence that makes it great.

DEI programs, born out of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, support and promote empathy for others, individuality, equality, and  the cultures of all Americans, and thus, provide safe spaces for marginalized peoples to work, to learn, and to thrive. Creating inclusive spaces are essential for the growth and development of society as a whole, making all people feel secure and valued.

And DEI policies are not only beneficial for POC, but improve life standards for many Americans. Some ways in which DEI initiatives benefit Americans include: 

• Military veterans, as result of their service and sacrifice, receive preferential hiring in some companies due to DEI initiatives.
• DEI initiatives prevent “systemic inequalities” in health care. 
• On-campus clubs and organizations provide communities and safe spaces for a diverse array of people from marginalized groups.
• DEI programs provide protections, programs, and exclusive job opportunities for the disabled.
• DEI programs enable much-needed diversity and representation in TV and film.

These programs — and countless more — contribute to a better America. They are an integral part of what makes America — a nation founded on principles of equality and freedom — great. 

Weaponizing DEI — as a too-convenient scapegoat, as a rationale for discrimination, as fuel for bigotry — is unacceptable. 

If Trump truly wants to “make America great again,” instead of dismantling DEI initiatives, he’d champion them.