With
diversity,
equity,
and
inclusion
initiatives
under
attack
in
America
writ
large
thanks
to
the
Trump
administration,
the
Diversity
Lab
has
changed
some
of
the
language
included
on
its
Mansfield
Certification
website.
The
American
Lawyer
has
noted
several
of
these
changes,
including
the
removal
of
language
referring
to
candidate
pool
quotas,
as
well
as
the
removal
of
words
within
the
DEI
acronym,
which
have
since
been
replaced
with
words
like
“equal”
and
“fairness.”
Here
are
just
a
handful
of
the
other
changes
that
have
been
made,
per
Am
Law:
While
a
section
of
the
Mansfield
Certification
page
saved
on
Jan.
12
by
Internet
Archive
stated
that
the
“Mansfield
Difference”
helped
boost
“inclusivity,
access
and
diversity”
in
leadership
roles
at
participating
firms,
the
Jan.
27
version
of
the
page
stated
the
certification
boosted
“inclusivity,
equal
access
and
transparency
in
advancement
processes
and
leadership
roles.”The
word
“equitable”
was
removed
from
the
“Purpose”
section
of
the
Mansfield
Certification
page
during
the
same
time
period,
and
“diversity”
was
removed
from
“leadership
diversity”
in
a
section
detailing
the
expansion
of
talent
pools
at
law
firms.Diversity
Lab’s homepage also
changed
since
a
Jan.
22 snapshot from
Internet
Archive.
The
first
paragraph
now
omits
an
entire
sentence
that
previously
stated,
“The
more
diverse
the
leadership,
the
more
inclusive
their
decisions
for
the
benefit
of
their
workforces
and
communities.”
The
closing
line
of
the
same
paragraph
now
reads,
“Our
north
star
is
fairness.”
Although
this
looks
like
it
was
perhaps
an
effort
to
de-emphasize
the
“divisiveness”
of
DEI,
Diversity
Lab
founder
and
CEO
Caren
Ulrich
Stacy
chalked
the
changes
up
to
“normal
website
refinements.”
Stacy
continued,
saying
that
prior
to
Trump’s
Executive
Orders
concerning
“illegal”
DEI
programming,
the
site
“changed
almost
every
day,”
and
that
even
now,
the
site
will
“continue
to
change
almost
every
day.”
What
hasn’t
changed
and
won’t
change
is
the
Diversity
Lab’s
bottom
line:
Stacy
notes
that
“our
work
remains
the
same:
we
are
focused
on
equal
access,
equal
treatment,
and
equal
opportunities.
We
are
also
keenly
aware
of
the
scrutiny
on
language
right
now
at
a
national
level,
and
we
want
to
be
as
clear
as
possible
on
our
focus
so
there
are
no
misconceptions—with
greater
inclusion,
comes
greater
diversity.”
Diversity
Lab
Alters
DEI-Centered
Verbiage
on
Mansfield
Certification
Website
[American
Lawyer]
Staci
Zaretsky is
a
senior
editor
at
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
love
to
hear
from
you,
so
please
feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
comments,
or
critiques.
You
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