DEI Debates: Misconceptions and Realities Unveiled (Full Transcript)

Speaker 1: The Republican Party, Donald Trump, his vice president, called her a DEI hire, said that she was not- I didn't call her a DEI hire. I'm not talking about you, I said the people running for office against her, called her a DEI hire. To your point, everything is being blamed on DEI. California fires, DEI. Trump's shooting, the rally at the Trump shooting, DEI, even though the head of his detail is a white man. Right-wing commentators talking about plane safety, saying planes are gonna crash because of DEI.

Speaker 2: But to that point, you had a video of a firefighter in Los Angeles, right, talking about the diversity in recruitment and saying that a person who gets themselves trapped in a fire is their own fault.

Speaker 1: You have to see how ridiculous the American public views that. Hold on, hold on, okay, that happened. But, Joe, did they cause the wildfire? No one caused the wildfire. There's a question of whether the person is competent to leave the department. Did that individual or even that ideology prevent the Los Angeles Fire Department from putting out a wildfire, five wildfires,

Speaker 2: in the city of Los Angeles? That particular firefighter is saying that she, I don't want to misgender her and get in more trouble, but she is unable to lift someone out of a fire and it's the person's fault. What does that have anything to do with the wildfires and the ability to stop them? I think a person's ability to carry someone out of a fire is a pretty good prerequisite to be a firefighter. Okay, I'm talking about the wildfires and the ability to stop them. What does that have to do with that? I don't think DEI was responsible for setting a fire. That's not what they were saying.

Speaker 1: It clearly was not. But that's what people say. And it clearly was not responsible

Speaker 3: for being able to put out a fire as well. Also, I hear you and I'm glad you don't think discrimination should happen, but our sitting president actually does because he discriminated against black people. He did not want them to be able to run from him and he has yet to repent for it and say it is wrong. It is something that is woven into our country and I understand that folks feel like DEI has gone too far, but disparities exist for a reason and DEI was a tactic to ensure that people had equal opportunity. Now, I think the numbers will speak for themselves. I think, and I also, again, this goes back to the immigration thing, this whole like snitch on people that Donald Trump, they better be careful because Donald Trump sits next to people that might get snitched on themselves.

Speaker 4: Snitches get snitches, be careful.

Speaker 3: I didn't want to say it. I was waiting for you, you from New York.

Speaker 4: I do. Let's talk about equal opportunity, right? Because this is what this is all about. It's about opening up the doors and removing the barriers that have existed for decades, right? There is a reason why black people in this country only have 15% of the wealth as white people. So what are you telling us? Are you telling us that we are unqualified, unsmart, that we're not actually operating based on merit? Why is it that we have a culture? There was affirmative action for white men

Speaker 1: for literally hundreds of years in this country. For hundreds of years, there was affirmative action for white men. And to answer your question, because my friend Abel would not, it is not because they're not working hard enough. It's because for centuries, they were locked out of education. For centuries, they were locked out of economic mobility. They couldn't even build wealth. They were set free in this country after being enslaved for hundreds of years with nothing. Nothing. And then they were subject to another 100 years of Jim Crow. So look, there are a lot of reasons for it, but it's not because they're not working hard enough.

Speaker 3: Can I just say, it perpetuates generation to generation. I would just encourage people who disagree with DEI to take time to sit down and have a conversation with a person of color who feels like DEI has helped them or has been discriminated against. Because again, when you put a face behind an actual issue, it makes you understand the issue better. All right.