How to Undermine Progress: The Disguised Agenda Behind “Non-Discriminatory” Lawsuits

Contemporary Legal Actions Threaten to Widen Economic Disparities Among Racial Groups in America

Photo by JD Designs on Unsplash

Motivation

One of my consulting friends just got his Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) certification. He lost his job a few months ago due to organizational politics and a bit of his mistakes. Consequently, he was ecstatic about the certification because he had decided to branch out and sell his decades of experience in a specialized field. He now has a means of paying his bills and feeding his family.

DBE certification, for him, means that when a white-owned company wants to get a federal contract, he and his team can get about 15% of the contract budget and work. He knows that white-owned companies only add DBE participating companies and consultants to get qualified for transportation-related federally-funded contracts. However, he may need to learn that they often don’t give much work and spend much of the budget on the DBE participants. Besides, I have dealt with many companies whose DBEs were white women’s companies, sometimes owned by their wives or family members.

Further insult, even white women are often relegated to secretarial tasks like preparing graphs, fixing meetings, and editing documents rather than working on substantial segments of the projects where they get a high percentage of the budget. It’s worse for a black DBE. I have been on federal committees arguing like hell to give a white-owned prime company with the requisite minority participation the contract. I have yet to participate on a committee where a black company is prime (main company leading), although I have heard such unicorns exist. From my experience, white companies only pay token homage to minority participation and often get contracts regardless of their DBE level.

Once they get the contract and have started the project, it’s difficult to then take the project away if black companies complain about lack of inclusion. My friend is a black DBE. I did not have the heart to tell him that he may not even get anything valuable from the certification because, likely, the white people will sue the contracting company to ensure they get “Non-discrimination.”

America — Land of Equal Opportunity?

The contemporary sociopolitical landscape in America is witnessing a deliberate and systematic effort to dismantle all forms of economic support for non-white racial and ethnic groups. It’s like an epic saga of Economic Racism (someone should make a TV series about this). This resurgence of policies and actions aims to strip these communities of the financial power they have painstakingly gained since the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. It’s like tearing down a house brick by brick before it is completed, then stoning the former tenants, now homeless, with the bricks while claiming it’s in the name of fairness.

The ultimate goal appears to be a regression to a nightmare era reminiscent of government-backed institutionalized terrorism, such as the Jim Crow laws, segregation, and the American apartheid system that historically benefited white Americans at the expense of marginalized groups and served as examples for South Africa and Germany to follow when they had their crazy ideas of white or so-called, “Aryan” domination.

There are many minority support programs, but I will only mention three in this article. These people will likely destroy any that they perceive benefits brown people. Such programs are essential for fostering an inclusive economic environment where disadvantaged groups thrive. They benefit the entire economy by including more diverse groups and ideas to make an economy and its people prosperous. By providing targeted assistance and opportunities, these programs help to handle historical inequalities and foster diversity in business ownership and economic participation.

Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE): The DBE program is a federal initiative to ensure that small businesses owned and headed by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals can compete for federally funded transportation contracts in America. The goal is to level the playing field and provide fair opportunities for minority and women-owned businesses. These need to be enhanced so that more brown and black companies can become primes, not dismantled so that black and brown companies get nothing AT ALL.

Small Business Administration (SBA) 8(a) Business Development: The 8(a) Business Development program helps small, disadvantaged businesses compete in the marketplace. It provides access to government contracting opportunities, business development assistance, and mentorship. The benefits include access to sole-source contracts, partnership opportunities, and business training and counseling. Ditto to my earlier recommendation for DBE programs.

Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) Business Centers: MBDA Business Centers provide minority-owned businesses with consulting services, procurement opportunities, and access to capital. These centers focus on helping businesses grow and compete in domestic and global markets. The benefits include business consulting, market research, financial management assistance, and networking opportunities. Double ditto!

History of White Privilege and Black Disenfranchisement

White Americans, since the country’s founding, enjoyed a plethora of benefits that they purposefully denied to Black people and other non-white groups (whether they are Asians, Native Americans, or anyone non-Christian and non-White).

From the era of enslavement through the enactment of Jim Crow laws, including the terrorism perpetrated by the Ku Klux Klan, white-believing Americans have meticulously woven the socioeconomic tapestry of America to ensure white dominance. Those who are less racist stay passive and enjoy the spoils from this dominance. Key legislation and actions, such as the GI Bill (which largely excluded Black veterans), redlining in housing policies, and discriminatory lending practices, were all designed to ensure white prosperity. As various studies, the daily news, and a global pandemic illustrated, we still encounter the results of such laws and practices today.

Laws from the 1940s to the 1960s, such as the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947, which restricted the power of labor unions (where Black workers were beginning to gain representation), and the Federal Housing Administration’s policies that denied loans to Black families, cemented racial economic disparities. These measures ensured that white people could build wealth through home ownership and tertiary education, while Black Americans were systematically excluded.

Contemporary Efforts to Undermine ALL Diversity Programs

In recent years, white-believing people have made a concerted effort to roll back the gains made through affirmative action and other diversity initiatives. Contrary to the misconception that affirmative action predominantly benefited Black people, statistical evidence shows that white women were among the primary beneficiaries. Despite this, dismantling affirmative action has been framed as a necessary measure to eliminate perceived preferential treatment.

“In this country, American means white. Everybody else has to hyphenate.” Toni Morrison

One notable case is the recent U.S. federal court of appeals panel ruling that suspended the Fearless Fund’s grant program for Black women business owners. The case, brought by the American Alliance for Equal Rights led by conservative activist Edward Blum, argued that the program was discriminatory.

By the way, when you see a white-run organization or law that seem to be named something inclusive, they mean ‘inclusive’ so that they alone benefit — in other words, the opposite of its true meaning. The ‘American Alliance for Equal Rights,’ is like the line in Orwells’ novel Animal Farm where the commandment on the wall stated ‘All Animals Are Equal but Some Animals Are More Equal Than Others.’ As Black and brown people, we all know we are equal as human beings, but for white-believing people, they are more equal than everyone else!

Black women can’t give grants to black women. I wonder if I will get sued for giving my donation to a church that’s predominantly black! This ruling is part of a broader legal battle against corporate diversity programs, aiming to dismantle structures that support racial and gender equity.

Blum celebrated the ruling, asserting that programs like the Fearless Fund are unjust and polarizing. Conversely, Fearless Fund CEO Arian Simone expressed that the ruling sends a devastating message against diversity in corporate America and beyond, highlighting the ongoing resistance to inclusive economic policies. I think it’s worse than that which I will get into below.

For those who have never heard of this guy, Edward Blum is a white conservative activist, known for his missionary efforts to challenge affirmative action and diversity initiatives through the judicial system. He is like a crusader bent on his mission of domination. Blum, of course, also motivated by money as well as ideology, is often backed by conservative think tanks and wealthy donors who oppose race-based policies. He represents a movement that seeks to eliminate what they perceive as racial preferences in education (thus affecting future outcomes of peoples’ actions by limiting knowledge), employment and business (both limiting financial and economic prosperity of non-white people). He aims to dismantle affirmative action programs and other diversity measures, advocating for a strictly race-neutral approach in all sectors. Blum has been the driving force behind several high-profile legal cases, including the recent Supreme Court decision that ended affirmative action in college admissions and forced the firing of qualified black people like Professor Claudine Gay. His actions are grounded in the belief that such policies are discriminatory and unjust to white people, aiming to create a society where race and ethnicity are not considered in decision-making processes despite evidence that these policies are essential for addressing historical and present-day systemic inequalities.

Threats to DBE Programs

Blum and racist people like him are emboldened by their success at dismantling equality in America. They will use the conservative judges selected by Trump to dismantle minority programs. Despite their critical role in promoting diversity and inclusion, these programs are now under scrutiny and threat from conservative factions.

The argument against these programs is rooted in a desire to monopolize access to government contracts, ensuring that white-owned businesses have unchallenged dominance. These actions by white supremacist actors not only undermine the economic progress of non-white communities but also seek to revert to a time when racial discrimination in business was the norm. It now aims to disguise racism as if it’s equality.

The argument against these programs is rooted in a desire to monopolize access to government contracts, ensuring that white-owned businesses have unchallenged dominance. Their white blindness makes them short-sighted. Killing black and brown prosperity and political power not only undermines the economic progress of non-white communities but also seeks to revert to a time when racial discrimination in business was the norm.

Only now, white people are rebranding it as “non-discrimination.” While these actions serve to bolster white dominance in various areas such as education, business, the economy, politics, and the judiciary, they also weaken the country further by limiting its human resources — its people, regardless of race.

The False Premise of Racial Inferiority

At the heart of these regressive efforts is a false premise that non-white individuals are inherently less capable or deserving. This narrative, reminiscent of colonial and segregationist ideologies, is used to justify the exclusion of non-white individuals from economic opportunities.

By controlling judges, lawmakers, and policymakers, proponents of this ideology aim to create a false self-fulfilling prophecy where the absence of non-white individuals in positions of power and influence is falsely attributed to racial inferiority rather than systemic exclusion. It’s like they are building proof to prove their beliefs.

“Race is FAKE!!” I keep shouting this!

The concept of race is a social construct, a fantasy made up to justify enslavement and discrimination, and it is not grounded in biological reality or any reality. Therefore, these actions waste valuable human resources by trampling the dreams and aspirations of some of its citizens for quality education and opportunities to contribute to innovation, business, law, employment, and society.

White believing people’s short-sightedness not only hinders personal growth but also stifles the nation’s potential to thrive and innovate. By maintaining these exclusionary practices, proponents of such policies are blinded by a desire to maintain white dominance and, in doing so, dampen the future prosperity of America.

An empire that cannot hold itself together, that fails to leverage the talents and ambitions of all its people, is destined to fall. We must learn from our past. As an example, the Roman Empire was plagued by internal conflicts including political instability, economic troubles, social unrest, and civil wars. As the 2024 film by Alex Garland, Civil War, depicts, and as we watch our society crumble, we are not far from a similar fate. These short-sighted actions ultimately threaten the country’s status as a global superpower, as they undermine the unity and collective strength necessary for sustained dominance on the world stage.

*Philanthropic groups are also watching the case because of its possible implications for charitable giving.*

The Black Freedom Fund, which was founded in 2021 to fund Black community organizations in California, has started a legal defense fund for its grantees for precisely that reason. Marc Philpart, its executive director, said the attacks on grantmaking that supports racial justice are coming because of the progress that’s been made, however fragile. Source: AP News

These lawsuits are not only targeting specific programs designed to support underprivileged groups but are also threatening the broader landscape of philanthropy aimed at assisting non-white communities. By challenging and dismantling initiatives like the Fearless Fund and affirmative action, these legal actions aim to stop all forms of targeted support for non-white groups.

This shift undermines the foundational purpose of these philanthropic efforts: to address and rectify historical and present-day injustices and provide opportunities to those who have been, and continue to be, systematically marginalized. Consequently, this broad legal assault jeopardizes the very existence of programs that empower disadvantaged groups, thereby reinforcing socio-economic disparities and perpetuating a cycle of inequality.

In other words, the racist programs by racist people pretending to be non-racist will cause more racism and result in more racial disparity. We are seeing it already as the conservative judges seem to disregard all legal logic and precedent and play the piper tone of their beliefs and those that put them there to bolster a society where only white people, especially white men, deserve to prosper.

The behavior by white-believing activists is that they know what’s best for everyone including all black people, better than everyone else. Their God ordained them as master over all. The oncoming American train wreck is this: many totalitarian regimes, complete with their genocide of the people they oppress, begin in such a way.

Recognizing and challenging these efforts is vital to our very survival, ensuring that the gains made since the Civil Rights Movement are not undone, but go further. When everyone is treated like a white man, regardless of origin, accent, gender, complexion, sexual orientation and so-called race, then we are equal. We must save America from those who aim to destroy it based on an ignorant belief they can’t seem to let go.

What madness grips our country?

Racism chains America by its hands.

Freedom calls, yet we are shackled,

Defying nature’s plan for unity.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C72a78Xyp-G/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Sources:

1. Historical Benefits of White Americans
2. GI Bill Exclusions
3. Jim Crow Laws and Economic Impact
4. Taft-Hartley Act
5. Federal Housing Administration Policies
6. Affirmative Action and White Women
7. Fearless Fund Court Ruling
8. Threats to DBE Programs
9. What America Taught the Nazis, Atlantic
10. False Premise of Racial Inferiority
11. America, Land of Equal Opportunity? Still Not There, Harvard
12. Systemic Racism and America Today, by Brookings
13. White women have become some of affirmative action’s fiercest opponents, Vox.
14. Whiteness, NMAAHC.
15. The culture war came for Claudine Gay — and isn’t done yet, Vox
16. Civil War, film by Alex Garland.

Watch the film Civil War. We have all the ingredients to get here and everyone knows it. See the trailer below.

[embed]We have all the ingredients to get here.