Dear editor:

There is a difference between primary discrimination under the 14th Amendment (usually illegal) and secondary or incidental bias under DEI programs (usually legal). Although both approaches end up excluding qualified people from the workforce, the Constitution prohibits one, but not the other.

Businesses and political agencies designed DEI programs to end Jim Crow practices that kept competent minorities, women and others unemployed. DEI principles provide limited favoritism for some jobs to reflect our cultural assortment of individuals and groups. Perhaps those plans create a more perfect union and do not violate the 14th Amendment.

The Supreme Court has not yet clarified this issue, with opinions partially supporting either view. Eventually the justices will decide whether DEI actions that help end Jim Crow discrimination will continue.

Meantime, the Trump/MAGA autocracy acts as if anti DEI discrimination is legal again. The MAGA bureaucrats fire minorities and women giving the impression they were not qualified from the start. That is an overall lie as any properly run DEI program includes only qualified candidates. Republican hypocrisy in this area reflects its general dishonesty with its many “Make America Go Away” schemes.

For example, Secretary of Defense Hegseth’s lack of experience with his inability to assure a reporter not receive secret war plans shines through. Tulsi Gabbard says no war plans were shared. She must imagine we are at war with Venezuela, but not Yemen. It’s a bit confusing.

The MAGA folks fired top General C.Q. Brown, a black man, for his “woke” focus on DEI programs in the military. Had he been the one who included the reporter in that war room group chat, would Trump have said he “has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man”? Or would he have been fired and used as an example of unqualified people with DEI agendas?

What do you think?

Dennis Reuter

Powell