Representation is Not Enough

When talking about identities in professional fields, the term "Representation" means that people of a particular identity are visibly present in that field. This is important because it can help shape which professional paths we think are open to us. Whether our impression comes from TV and movies or the pictures on a company's website or the faculty teaching in a department or the students sitting in a classroom, if we are more likely to think a career path is an option if we see others like us following that path.

However, in a field that loves quantitative data, it's important to look beyond a company's diversity stats to consider what the numbers actually represent, why the numbers look the way they do, and what the day to day experience is like for the actual human beings who work at that company.

D or E or I

DEI stands for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. While there are several variations on the acronym, it's important to understand what each of those three words means in this context.

D = Diversity: the variety of identities present, with particular attention to those historically excluded from the space

E = Equity: distributing or dividing resources proportionally based on the needs of the recipients to achieve a fair outcome for those involved

I = Inclusion: different groups or individuals having different backgrounds are culturally and socially accepted and welcomed, and equally treated

Another way to think about it is this: Diversity tells us who attends a meeting, Inclusion tells us who is welcome to speak at the meeting, and Equity tells us who runs the meeting and which ideas get taken seriously.

Representation is most closely connected to Diversity. You obviously can't have Equity and Inclusion be part of your campus or workplace culture if you don't have Diversity, but to have a group or groups join a space while not giving them input or considering their particular needs and the quality of their experience is tokenism.

The Difference Between Equality and Equity

Two terms which are often confused with one another in discussions of DEI but which have different meanings are Equality and Equity.

Equality refers to the notion that every individual has an equal opportunity or giving everyone the exact same resources, whereas equity, as mentioned above, refers to distributing or dividing resources proportionally based on the needs of the recipients to achieve a fair outcome for those involved.

It's important to understand the difference between the two concepts because they usually lead to very different policies and practices.

Here are two commonly used analogies to help make the importance of the distinction clear:

Equality is giving everyone the exact same type and size of shoe, equity is giving everyone shoes (or other mobility aids) to fit their particular bodies and needs.

Runner A starts the race 30 seconds earlier than Runner B. In the end, Runner B finishes 15 seconds behind Runner A. Equality is judging their running abilities by who finishes first. Equity is judging their running abilities by who ran the fastest.