Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies were supposed to rescue marginalized groups – instead, they created a whole new one: young white men.
A new viral essay titled "The Lost Generation" by Jacob Savage brought much-needed attention to the devastating impact DEI initiatives have had on the livelihoods of white men, who have found themselves locked out of the American workplace. DEI was ostensibly designed to expand opportunity without undermining meritocracy, but in practice, it limits opportunities for white men regardless of their qualifications.
Young White Men Got Screwed
Savage experienced DEI-driven rejection himself in Hollywood, where he worked for years writing scripts. Savage described achieving “minor successes” before an executive contacted him about an exciting employment opportunity.
Years of hard work were about to pay off, Savage thought, until the showrunner reached back out with bad news: “I had initially thought I might be able to bring you guys on, but in the end it wasn’t possible.”
Despite the apparent dead end, Savage said he and his colleague met with the executive, whom he described as a “Gen-X white guy.” The showrunner was apologetic, explaining that the writer’s room already had higher-level writers who were all white men, and “they couldn’t have an all-white-male room.”
Savage’s experience facing sex- and race-based discrimination is, unfortunately, far from unique. One in ten hiring managers at businesses with DEI programs say their company “avoids hiring white men,” according to a survey conducted by the job-seeker resource website Resume Builder. The poll also found that six in ten hiring managers prioritize diversity over qualifications.
Savage hit the nail on the head: “The doors [for white men] seemed to close everywhere and all at once.”
Even after President Donald Trump’s administration took an axe to DEI policy, bringing such initiatives under intense scrutiny nationwide, Bureau of Labor Statistics data released earlier this year revealed that “white men have seen a worse erosion of employment opportunities” than other race- and sex-defined groups, Forbes reported, adding that opportunities to find a new job have “worsened for white men.”
Is DEI Illegal?
According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), DEI is a “broad term that is not defined in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,” which “prohibits employment discrimination based on protected characteristics such as race and sex.”
Under Title VII, if an employer makes a hiring choice based “in whole or in part” on an applicant’s race, sex, or other protected characteristic, the decision may be unlawful.
The Path Forward
The Trump administration is taking action to correct the DEI disaster that effectively prevented white men from being hired by companies across the country.
Andrea Lucas, chair of the EEOC, recently urged white men to report race- or sex-based discrimination in the workplace.
“You may have a claim to recover money under federal civil rights laws,” Lucas wrote on X.
“The EEOC is committed to identifying, attacking, and eliminating ALL race and sex discrimination — including against white male employees and applicants.”
Vice President JD Vance also spoke up in defense of white men who have been disenfranchised by rampant – and arguably illegal – discrimination: “A lot of people think ‘DEI’ is lame diversity seminars or racial slogans at NFL games. In reality, it was a deliberate program of discrimination primarily against white men.”
Young white men now have a duty to report race- and sex-based discrimination in the workplace – not only for themselves, but for future generations of Americans who will enter an increasingly exclusionary job market.
