Defending D.E.I. Defends Hawai’i
(8 MIN read. The following is an editorial essay)DEFENDING DIVERSITY, EQUITY, & INCLUSION DEFENDS HAWAI’I
Connection is a human need. Interconnectivity - whether online or in real life - defines our modern experience; it gives shape and meaning to the dynamic nature of these digital times. Change comes quickly and abruptly nowadays. News spreads fast. Judgements are more often rushed to than approached with caution. To adapt, we have consistently turned to modern connectivity and interconnectivity as a means of organizing the noise, maintaining our awareness of what happens, and (if we’re lucky) figuring out where we fit in the mix.
In our interconnected world, societies everywhere are becoming increasingly diversified. Digital interconnectivity - perhaps more than we realize - fuels our increased awareness of humanity’s natural, ever-expanding variety. As a result, whether in terms of popular culture, lifestyle choices, or even social media trends, concepts rooted in values of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are more prevalent and more meaningful to more people than ever.
Contrary to some of the louder and nastier narratives you might find online, DEI wasn’t hatched from some grand conspiracy. There was no specific agenda being pushed by shadowy groups of international agents, bent on world domination. For decades, the evolution was very subtle. Its rise was organic - a natural and predictable outcome of having prioritized the technology which makes modern connection and interconnectivity possible: the internet, smart phones, apps, streaming video, direct messaging, “facetime”, satellite global positioning, and even artificial intelligence.
As a consequence, while interconnectivity becomes more accessible to everyone, diversity, equity, and inclusion have in turn become more relevant than ever - both as an irrevocable feature of how things are, as well as a reminder of how things have changed in a relatively short time. Yet despite this increase in relevancy and popular growth, a backlash of generational proportions has arisen, determined to condemn and ultimately confine that very same unprecedented momentum and popularity.
WEAVING SOCIETY FROM DEI
Imagine our communities as a single vibrant tapestry, woven with various threads of different sizes, widths, materials, colors and textures. Each distinction represents the unique identities and characteristics of the people: our neighbors, friends, relatives, co-workers, and those we've never met. This includes race and ethnicity of course, but also gender, sexual orientation, intellect, socio-economic background, age, ability, religion, physique, personal initiative, and even one’s private thoughts and deeply-held beliefs. A truly diverse society values and celebrates variety as well as healthy differences, recognizing that every demographic fraction ultimately makes the entire social tapestry richer and stronger. But diversity alone is not enough. Diversity without equity is a chaos of arbitrary comparisons that, if left unchecked, fosters harm - not harmony. Diversity must be checked and balanced by equity.
Equity, like justice, is about encouraging if not achieving fairness in alignment with a community’s values, a nation’s history, its authentic culture, and its citizens. It acknowledges that historical and systemic factors have created unearned advantages for some, while manifesting unwanted and unchosen disadvantages for many others. It strives to level the playing field by ensuring fair and practical access to opportunities and resources, regardless of someone’s incidental background or their life’s momentary direction. Think of it as providing everyone with only the basic tools, information, or opportunity they need to just have a fair shot at life. That fair shot is what equity aspires to provide, whether it be quality education, reliable healthcare, or a job that pays decently.
To be clear, neither equity nor diversity coercively forces opportunities or resources upon us. They cannot actively limit our daily freedom (that's what governments and corporations do). Diversity and equity are merely guiding principles. When these principles are applied together, they present a fair chance to all, as the need arises, to the degree that it's practical. The cause of diversity and equity is not served by supplanting someone deserving with someone who isn’t. Neither diversity, equity, nor inclusion are truly concerned with leaving a worthy person worser-off. Instead, the point is to promote basic fairness as a matter of respect; to uphold the morality of treating others the way we would wish to be treated, while simultaneously pursuing the practical methods at our disposal which bring that golden rule into living reality.
Inclusion at its core is about creating a meaningful, durable, long-lasting sense of belonging: a condition in which everyone feels welcome, respected, and empowered to participate fully - even when they disagree. It strives to enable everyone to bring their authentic selves to work, school, or any social setting without the arbitrary fear of being excluded, ridiculed, or ignored. When people are included, when they feel included, and when they can ensure their participation has just as much value as anyone else’s, they thrive. Their experience counts as an asset to their community - not a burden and never a detriment. Inclusion improves well-being, confirms a healthy sense of self-esteem, and validates our natural desire for acceptance. Inclusion, in the spirit of genuine empathy and compassion, leads to a more fulfilling life.
DEI MAKES BUSINESS WORK BETTER
The positive impacts of DEI have always extended beyond individuals and their personal lives to neighborhoods, organizations, businesses, and ultimately to society as a whole. When people from different backgrounds, experiences, and skill sets come together, they can bring a medley of constructive collaboration that sparks innovation, creativity, and effective, efficient problem-solving.
Diverse, inclusive organizations are better positioned to understand and meet the needs of dynamic, ever-shifting markets as well as their passionate customer bases, which inexorably leads to greater success. A 2023 study by McKinsey & Co. found that companies with greater ethnic and cultural diversity were more likely to outperform their peers financially 1. This makes sense. Diverse companies are often better equipped with the necessary human resources to assess, understand and respond to globalized, digitally-interconnected markets that change more rapidly, behave less predictably, and function more unconventionally than at any other time in economic history. Diverse, inclusive workplaces grounded in mutual respect and mutual purpose create a tangible sense of belonging. And as belonging is bolstered, discrimination is displaced - not merely as a matter of top-down policy but as an authentic bottom-up company culture - leading to happier employees, lower turnover, and increased productivity. (1)
DEFENDING DEI DEFENDS HAWAI’I
Hawai’i has been shaped by both diversity and inclusion at many different times in history. Prior to the arrival of Capt. Cook in 1778, Hawai’i was a venue for large, long-distance over-water mass migrations from Tahiti, Samoa, and the Marquesas, as well as visits going to and coming from historic Mesoamerica. The centuries following Cook’s arrival made the islands a melting pot, with waves of immigrants from East Asia, Europe, and the Americas contributing to a dynamic social atmosphere unlike anywhere else in the world. (2) In the 1800s, plantations brought waves of laborers from China, Japan, Portugal, and the Philippines. These immigrants integrated their customs, cuisine, dialects, traditions, and ingenuity into the local culture, enriching Hawaii's society. Despite facing historic challenges and discrimination, they endure and persevere economically while also playing a vital role in shaping Hawaii's identity, security, and future. (2)
Diversity, equity, and inclusion works. It makes sense for Hawai’i economically, practically, and morally. DEI values improve society, not weaken it. They support the continued integrity of our social fabric. And yet, for all their benefit they are under threat.
Beginning in 2025 Hawaii’s people must confront the challenge of guarding the integrity of our social fabric against insurgent Washington politics hostile to diversity, equity, and inclusion. To survive this shift, it is imperative that Hawai’i resist this shift. Denying diversity, equity, and inclusion risks denying what makes Hawai’i so distinctive - not merely as a cultural homeland, a destination to visit, or a venue for business, but as a safe place with good people who stand on aloha come what may.
Federal policies currently taking shape in Washington DC will erode Hawaii's historic acceptance of DEI values as much and as quickly as possible. If these efforts are allowed to persist, they will entrench themselves within a government system on which Hawai’i has been financially and politically dependent since the early 1900s. Despite the fact that Hawaiians and Hawaiian culture predate the USA by more than one thousand years and despite this history’s enduring influence over the identity of the islands and her residents (even in the modern era), neither Hawai’i nor her citizens are immune to such sweeping systemic change. Federal policies designed to weaken diversity, stigmatize equity, and discourage inclusion are already infecting Hawai’i. Even if they are only moderately successful, these policy efforts will likely have detrimental and permanent generational effects. The purpose of these new federal initiatives are to create a chilling effect on DEI, its influence, and its implementation, leading to a rollback of hard-won social progress and a resurgence of politically-convenient discrimination. Since Hawaii's social cohesion, economic prosperity, and ability to meet future challenges are historically, culturally, and morally grounded in values associated with DEI, their place in America’s national identity is synonymous with Hawaii’s place. (3) Effectively, as diversity, equity and inclusion suffers in the US, so will Hawai’i.
A Hawai’i that willingly embraces the social and economic consequences of this new era of American inequality and division is not Hawai’i, not Hawaiian, and not aloha. Not in any meaningful way. Not at all.
By leaning into her endemic values, by leveraging her heritage of diversity against the whims of Washington DC, by squaring her culture of equity and belonging to her people and not the politics of a moment, and by living aloha fully and authentically, Hawai’i can begin insulating all her people from the coming threat and its inevitable fallout. By maintaining local investments in DEI initiatives, Hawai’i ensures that a more just and prosperous future will always be in reach of our keiki’s generation, as well as their keiki, and their grandchildren. DEI pays the promise of prosperity forward as fairly as possible. A more diverse, equitable, and inclusive Hawai’i is where everyone has the fair opportunity not merely to live well, but to succeed and to thrive.
Aloha makes it so.
- Mark Mauikanehoalani Lovell
KAIROU WATERMAN CO-FOUNDER & LEAD DESIGNER
Works cited
1. Examples of DEI Initiatives and How to Ensure They Make a ..., accessed February 8, 2025, https://chronus.com/blog/dei-initiatives-examples
2. Hawai'i Labor History - University of Hawaii System, accessed February 8, 2025, https://www.hawaii.edu/uhwo/clear/home/Lhistory.html
3. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Context of Black History in ..., accessed February 8, 2025, https://www.hecouncil.org/news/2024/02/13/main/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-in-the-context-of-black-history-in-hawaii/
