Discrimination, Exclusion, and Inequality

This letter to the editor, by Celeste Koeberl JD, MA, appeared in the Hudson Star Observer on February 27, 2025.

Until the federal 1964 Civil Rights Act, it was legal to discriminate against, exclude, and inequitably treat Americans based on their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in public accommodations, education, government, and employment. The Civil Rights Act’s Title VII outlawed employment discrimination.

Employment sex discrimination was so entrenched in 1964 that amending Title VII to prohibit it was a “poison pill” ploy, done in expectation that Congress then would vote down the Civil Rights Act. After the Act was adopted with “sex” included, its sex discrimination prohibition was considered more an accidental result of political maneuvering than an intent to ensure equal employment opportunities.

In 1964, many employers refused to consider women job applicants. Employers who hired women paid men more and gave men better benefits for doing the same jobs. Experienced women with superior qualifications were passed over for promotions in favor of inexperienced men with lower qualifications. Women who married or became pregnant were fired, while men who married or became parents got raises. Women were laid off before men. Job seekers perused advertisements organized as “Help Wanted-Male” and “Help Wanted-Female” into 1973.

In 2025, women are about half America’s total labor force, and women workers have progressed toward equality with men workers. Nevertheless, inequities remain, including: a persistent earnings gap, with women earning less than men even in the same occupation; underrepresentation of women in certain occupations and industries, such as those paying above $100,000 annually and at top levels in government and business; and greater inequities for nonwhite women.

Now, Donald Trump and Elon Musk want to end federal “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” efforts, supposedly to promote “meritocracy”. So far, Trump/Musk have disabled the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission created by Title VII to enforce it; replaced “DEI” agency webpages with “Page Not Found – 404” messages; and moved to fire employees they associate with “DEI”, who it turns out are mostly nonwhite women.

In practice, Trump/Musk are reinstating the pre-1964 “DEI” program of “Discrimination, Exclusion, and Inequality”, under which measures of “merit” include being male and white. That was wrong then, and it’s wrong now.