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It demands that DEI opponents meet a burden of proof using empirical evidence rather than anecdotes, misinformation, and unsubstantiated claims. 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[https://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero](https://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero)  \nLeveraging Research and Demanding Proof In Response To Legislative Attacks on DEI in U.S. Higher Education  \nShaun Harper  \nUniversity of Southern California  \nMore than 50years of research confirms the value that diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies, programs, and professional roles add to college and university campuses. Despite this, governors, state legislators, federal policymakers, and a  \nU.S. President have signed executive orders, issued “Dear Colleague” letters, and enacted policies in recent years that have defunded or eliminated DEI initiatives. Many DEI professionals have lost their jobs; grants to scholars studying DEI-related topics have been paused and canceled. This article is a call for greater reliance on and appreciation for empirical evidence about the educational benefits of DEI in higher education. It also places the burden of proof on DEI opponents who make enormously consequential, unsubstantiated claims. Lastly, five common myths and exaggerations about DEI are juxtaposed with evidence from various trustworthy sources.  \nKeywords: Colleges, DEI, disinformation, diversity, education policy, equity, ethnicity, higher education, misinformation, policy, policy analysis, postsecondary education  \nCulture centers and multicultural affairs offices, programs and activities, resources, and services that ensure access and opportunities for women, students of color, veterans, students with disabilities, low-income Americans, Jewish and Muslim students, LGBTQ+ collegians, and other citizens who make campuses diverse have been defunded and eliminated at many postsecondary institutions across the United States since January 2021. Dedicated, highly qualified, and law-abiding professionals who were hired to help colleges and universities enact espoused institutional commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have lost their jobs. Presidents and governing board members have been placed in the tough position of choosing between federal funding on which their institutions rely for survival or protecting the diverse people, programs, and policies that enhance institutional excellence. Since January 2025, highly accomplished, law-abiding researchers who have dedicated their careers to eradicating inequities in education, health, housing, the economy, and other sectors of our society have had their grants abruptly canceled, which has led to massive layoffs in their labs, centers, and institutes. More alarming is that their important, in several instances lifesaving, work has been paused, which will ultimately result in the exacerbation of existing inequities and the manufacturing of new racial, gen  \nder, and socioeconomic disparities among Americans.  \nAll of this destruction is the result of baseless lies, misinformation, disinformation, and exaggerations about DEI. Opponents are recklessly making generalizations and  \nunsubstantiated claims about places they have never been. Their attacks are largely informed by anecdotes or small handfuls of reported wrongdoings on a relatively tiny number of campuses instead of on meticulously-derived confirmations about what is actually occurring at our nation’s nearly 4,000 degree-granting postsecondary institutions. As a citizen and scholar, I highly value and insist on evidence. As a matter of justice, the burden of proof must be on those who make erroneous, highly consequential cases against DEI. I therefore call for greater reliance on rigorous studies about the educational benefits of DEI, as well as a stronger corpus of evidence from attackers who claim that DEI is divisive, discriminatory, overfunded, and otherwise harmful to our dem","cbCairt6zZT190fu","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCairt6zZT190fu","pdf",381042,"English","# Overview\n## Policy and legislative attacks on DEI\n## Call for empirical proof\n## Honoring five decades of empirical evidence","[{\"question\":\"What is the article’s main argument about DEI in U.S. higher education?\",\"answer\":\"The article argues that extensive research supports DEI’s educational benefits while recent legislative and policy actions have weakened DEI work through defunding and job losses.\"},{\"question\":\"What evidence does the author say should guide DEI debates?\",\"answer\":\"The author calls for reliance on rigorous, empirical studies and a stronger evidence base, placing the burden of proof on those making consequential claims against DEI.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the article address common criticisms of DEI?\",\"answer\":\"It juxtaposes five common myths and exaggerations about DEI with evidence from trustworthy sources, contrasting misinformation with carefully derived confirmations.\"}]","Leveraging Research and Demanding Proof In Response To Legislative Attacks on DEI in U.S. Higher Education | PDF",1792069475,18]