The Real Reasons for the DEI Backlash. And Some Solutions

Right-leaning politicians in Canada have joined the MAGA campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre told podcaster Jordan Peterson conversations about race need to be put aside. His campaign chair Jenni Byrne publicly attacked retiring Liberal cabinet minister Anita Anand’s support of DEI programs.

South of the border, U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered all federal DEI workers be put on paid leave and signed an executive order cracking down on private companies with DEI programs.

The right-wing rhetoric is bringing big changes, as major employers like Meta and Amazon announce they are scrapping their own equitable hiring initiatives.

The programs often include policies to hire people from historically marginalized communities, offer them training or professional support and collect data on workplace diversity. Programs also often train staff on more inclusive equitable practices.

“Backlash does not mean DEI is failing,” says Camellia Bryan, an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business. “It often signals that dominant-group employees are experiencing discomfort as existing power structures shift.”

Her research homes in on resistance to diverse and inclusive hiring programs. That’s why, as Canadian conservative politicians campaign against diversity programs, The Tyee turned to Bryan to break down the backlash against DEI programs.

Our conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

The Tyee: What’s driving this pushback against inclusive hiring programs?

Camellia Bryan: Social identity threat — the feeling that dominant group members’ status, power or way of life is under threat — can lead to backlash. Dominant groups can either close off and become further entrenched in these beliefs or open up to learning and reflection.

What do you mean by dominant groups?

Dominant groups are groups that have historically held greater power, resources and esteem in society. Examples include white people in America, heterosexual people in heteronormative cultures and the Brahmin caste in India.

What’s the effect of major employers like Amazon and Meta pausing their DEI programs? Why does that matter?

The decision of major employers to scale back their DEI programs has significant ripple effects, not just within their organizations but across industries.

It legitimizes resistance to DEI, signalling that efforts to increase diversity are optional or even detrimental. This fuels backlash, reinforcing the idea that diversity initiatives unfairly disadvantage dominant groups, which in turn leads to more organizations retreating from their commitments to equity and inclusion.

These rollbacks also reinforce existing hierarchies. They allow organizations to default back to biased hiring and promotion patterns, ultimately maintaining existing inequalities in the organization.

What might the loss of DEI programs mean for workers?

The loss of DEI initiatives can demoralize employees from marginalized groups, increasing turnover and reducing commitment. Many employees, including those from dominant groups who support inclusion, see DEI efforts as a signal that their organizations value fairness and belonging. When those efforts are dismantled, it undermines trust and can lead to disengagement, ultimately harming the company’s ability to attract and retain top talent.

President Donald Trump has blamed everything from a Washington, D.C., plane crash to the Los Angeles wildfires on DEI programs, with no evidence. What’s your reaction?

This claim is not only misleading but also a strategic attempt to create backlash against DEI initiatives.

The idea that diversity initiatives lead to incompetence is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of DEI. These programs are not about lowering standards, but about expanding the pool of qualified candidates and addressing structural barriers that have historically excluded certain groups.

This fear-based framing shifts the conversation away from facts and toward emotional reactions, making it more difficult to engage in meaningful discussions about the benefits of diverse workplaces. Instead of allowing these claims to go unchallenged, it is important to encourage dialogue and feedback that corrects these incorrect beliefs.

How can workers adapt to the loss of these programs?

Even as formal DEI structures are weakened, employees can take steps to continue advancing workplace inclusion.

One key approach is fostering dialogue, where employees from different perspectives engage in meaningful discussions that challenge their assumptions about identity and equity. Employees who engage in such dialogue are more likely to change how they see identity and inequality rather than defaulting to defensiveness.

Without official DEI training programs, employees can pursue self-education through reading, attending related seminars and workshops and engaging in external learning opportunities to deepen their understanding of workplace equity.

Employees should also continue to push for accountability by tracking workforce representation data, advocating for transparent promotion criteria and ensuring that hiring and leadership development processes stay equitable.

What are some ways employers can improve DEI outcomes while managing backlash?

Instead of abandoning DEI in response to backlash, organizations should integrate it into leadership development and organizational culture. A key strategy is to frame DEI as both a learning process and a moral imperative, rather than a zero-sum game where one group’s gain means another’s loss.

Resistance often stems from fears of status loss, but when diversity is framed as expanding opportunities rather than redistributing them, defensiveness decreases and buy-in increases.

Organizations can also manage backlash proactively by addressing concerns directly, providing data-driven justifications for DEI efforts, training managers to navigate identity-based discussions, and ensuring fairness and transparency in hiring and promotions.