Why these Marylanders are doubling down on DEI

Despite President Donald Trump’s recent executive decisions targeting diversity, equity and inclusion policies and programs, Juan Webster flew to Hawaii anyway.

That’s because Webster still intended to hold a weeklong training late last month for 120 hotel employees at the Montage Kapalua Bay in Maui. This year, Webster and his team plan to train about 2,000 Montage International hotel chain employees worldwide in best practices for promoting diversity, equity and inclusion.

“I feel supported,” by ongoing DEI efforts at select companies despite increasing political pressure, said Webster, the former general manager of the Sagamore Pendry Baltimore Hotel, which is part of the Montage brand.

Webster is among the Marylanders who are leaning into DEI even as the term itself has been used as a weapon by critics, including the Trump administration.

One Trump order blasted DEI for corrupting institutions “by replacing hard work, merit, and equality with a divisive and dangerous preferential hierarchy.” Trump this month linked the imposition of DEI policies under previous administrations to the midair collision between a passenger jet and an Army helicopter that killed 67 late last month.

But some leaders in business, culture, education and politics in the state say that DEI efforts are still valuable, address inequities based on race and help move toward great equality for all. McKinsey & Company, the well-known consultancy, recently made the business case, finding in 2022 that companies which are more diverse, equitable and inclusive have been better able to respond to challenges, win top talent and meet the needs of a wide swath of customers.

The criticism is nothing new in Baltimore under Mayor Brandon Scott.

The recently reelected mayor famously clapped back at critics during the 2024 Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse who labeled him a “DEI Mayor.” Experts say that some on the conservative right use the term on its face value to attack diversity efforts. But others use it more nefariously to mean “Didn’t Earn It.”

Scott said at the time it was even worse.

“We know what these folks really want to say when they say DEI mayor,” he told The Banner last March. “Whether it is DEI or clown. They really want to say the N-word.”

This month, which is Black History Month, Scott has continued his visible support for DEI and the particular contributions of Black people in this country and beyond through his social media posts. One included a salute to Black military figures, tagging it with: “Black History Month. DEI. Definitely Earned It.”

The city also filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration earlier this month, seeking to block its orders banning DEI programs. The city argued that the orders put at risk hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants that are or could be earmarked for the city.

DEI has become a “slur,” part of “a targeted effort” to denegrate people of color, said Karsonya “Kaye” Wise Whitehead, professor of communication and African and African American studies at Loyola University Maryland, who also leads the Karson Institute for Race, Peace & Social Justice.

This year, despite Trump’s criticism and DEI rollback by several large corporations, the university continued to embrace race-related programming by hosting a panel in January with 1619 Project author Nikole Hannah Jones, whose work has reexamined the origins and impact of the American slavery system. The center has also forged ahead with its reparative work in connection with the university’s acknowledgment of its role in the slave trade.

“Loyola is committed to making sure that we are an open and inclusive environment,” she said. “As a college campus, we know this is where you should have a tougher conversation. It’s about giving people the tools they need to have the discussions and give them the space and opportunity to have these.”

A group of prominent institutions, including the Greater Baltimore Committee, the University of Maryland Medical System and Johns Hopkins University pitched Baltimore as a “top tech destination that is inclusive” and became one of 31 regions to secure the federal government’s Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs program in 2023.

Their vision: Make Baltimore America’s first equitech region by highlighting the region’s growing technological potential and commitment to inclusivity.

Mark Anthony Thomas, CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committe, which leads the Baltimore Tech Hub Consortium, said one factor behind the selection was the Baltimore Tech Hub’s plan to support Black and brown entrepreneurs.

But under the new Trump administration, the Tech Hub may have to move away from using words like “equitech” or “inclusivity” to comply with new executive orders, Thomas said.

Thomas said, however, he isn’t worried. “It was always part of the plan that if there was a new administration to come in, we’d have to adapt to then fit what their priorities are going to be,” he said.

The consortium won’t abandon DEI completely. The group would simply change the framing of future proposals to focus on other aspects of their initial pitch, including biomanufacturing and biotechnology.

“You strip out the controversial or trigger terms and lean into the work itself,” Thomas said.

On the cultural front, the Hippodrome Foundation this month will bring 300 Baltimore students to see a performance of the acclaimed musical “The Lion King” as part of a Black Excellence in the Arts event. The day will feature a Q&A with Black and brown members of the production, as well as three live songs.

“The arts thrive when they reflect the diversity of the community, said Olive Waxter, the president of the foundation, which has provided programming for 90,000 students through its free programs since 2004.

Last month, state Del. Ashanti Martinez, a Democrat representing New Carrollton, introduced a resolution reaffirming Maryland’s commitment to DEI.

“This resolution underscores Maryland’s dedication to removing barriers, fostering inclusivity, and ensuring that everyone, regardless of their background, has the opportunity to thrive,” Martinez said in a statement.

In an interview this week with MSNBC, Gov. Wes Moore reiterated his support for DEI efforts and touted the diversity in his administration.

“We focus on excellence,” Moore said. “It’s the best way of understanding what opportunities that you have a chance to capture, that you might not have thought of yourself. It’s important because you want to have a multitude of perspectives that are around the table.”