But opponents ignore both the history of so-called meritocracy, and the fact that DEI programs benefit business, Frazier and Chenault argue. But they said opponents have weaponized select examples of diversity programs that are not practiced widely to oppose DEI entirely. Brandon Bell/Getty ImagesMeanwhile, conservative legal groups are now filing lawsuits targeting companies’ diversity initiatives, and Republican leaders like Florida Gov. Frazier and Chenault said there was a split between companies that rushed to create diversity programs in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020 and companies that have embedded these programs into their business. “For those companies that had integrated DEI into the way they do business, fundamentally, it’s marbled into the meat, so to speak.

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