Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Boss Faces Ohio State Probe After She Wrote Forbes Article About ‘Decentering Whiteness’

A diversity, equity, and inclusion boss faces a state probe over an article she wrote in Forbes about ‘decentering whiteness’ in the workplace.

Janice Gassam Asare was branded ‘racist’ by Republican Senator J.D. Vance over the piece. The congressman has now ordered a probe into whether Asar and her ocnsultancy, BWG Business Solutions, has ever been handed Ohio taxpayers’ cash.

In the Forbes article, Asare explores dismantling systems that prioritize white dominant culture to create a more ‘inclusive’ workplace for people of color.

She defines ‘white-centering’ as a phenomenon that elevates white culture at the expense of non-white groups, contributing to inequity and injustice within organizations.

‘It has been given many names including the White gaze and Whiteness as the default,’ she said, ‘Because White-centering is often left unexamined and unchecked, equity and justice have continued to evade organizations.’

Vance strongly condemned the article, calling it racist and criticizing Forbes for publishing it.

‘I’m just done with this s—. It’s racist and it’s gross. Forbes should be ashamed of themselves for publishing it,’ he wrote. ‘The author is a ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ consultant. I’ve directed my staff to investigate whether her ‘business’ receives any public money from Ohio.’

In response, Asare claimed that Vance misunderstood the concept of ‘decentering whiteness’ and offered to provide further clarification through her book on the subject.

Vance, among many others, condemned the content and initiated an investigation into Asare and whether her organization receives funding from Ohio.

Others on X, including public figures, such as The Federalist editor-in-chief Mollie Hemingway and fellow Federalist writer David Harsanyi, expressed disapproval of both the article and Forbes for promoting what they called anti-American sentiments and racism.

Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy also chimed in, arguing against the idea of ‘decentering whiteness’ by suggesting it equated to firing white individuals.

He called it ‘racism without the possibility of reverse racism.’

Another commented, ‘Abolition of DEI should be part of the Anti-Communist Manifesto.’

‘Written by a DEI consultant so of course it’s going to be racist against Whites,’ another comment read.

A third user commented, ‘Why is racism against white people ok? Please explain.’

Asare told Fox that Vance had ‘no idea’ what he was talking about.

‘I would say this: It’s obvious that the senator has no idea what decentering whiteness actually means and how it’s about the system of whiteness and not one white person or white people,’ she told Fox News Digital.

‘I expound on what decentering whiteness in the workplace means in my book of the same name, which I’m happy to send to the senator or to anyone else that is confused.’

An analysis of US-listed company’s earnings call revealed companies appeared to be finally coming to the conclusion that going woke could mean going broke – or at least see their share price fall to uncomfortable levels.

Many firms diversity, equity and inclusion departments have been scaled back or scrapped altogether. Top corporations rushed to fund and build them up in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in May 2020 and the rush of racial justice protests that followed.

An analysis of earnings calls has seen a sudden and rapid fall when it comes to firms mentioning the terms ‘diversity, equity and inclusion’, ‘green and social initiatives’ and ‘sustainability’ in quarterly calls to investors.

There were close to 1,000 mentions of such causes in earnings calls until the start of Quarter 1 of 2022.

By Quarter 2 of 2023, the space of 15 months, the number appears to have almost halved with 575 mentions of these woke terms.

There was a 31 percent drop in mentions of woke issues during earnings in the most recent quarter, compared to the same earnings period last year, according to The Wall Street Journal.