Universities have long positioned themselves as champions of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI in North America but usually called EDI in the UK), but they are far from immune to pushback. The global backlash against such efforts has reached campuses, too.
Universities are being targeted by efforts to roll back or abolish DEI initiatives. In March, the US Education Department launched an investigation into more than 50 universities that partnered with The PhD Project, a programme intended to improve diversity among business professors, and since 2021, numerous universities in the US and Canada have shuttered their DEI offices or renamed them.
Although this backlash may feel discouraging to some who fear for the future of DEI, it is important to recognise that this is a well-documented response to advances towards equity, diversity and inclusion. During the post-Reconstruction period from the late 19th century, white supremacist backlash against civil rights gains led to the rise of Jim Crow laws, voter suppression tactics such as literacy tests and poll taxes, and widespread racial violence, including lynchings. These efforts aimed to re-establish white dominance and reverse the political and social advancements made by Black Americans.
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While some of the present opposition stems from coordinated political rhetoric, research shows it also arises from something more personal and human: identity threat.
Identity threat occurs when individuals feel their sense of self or group membership being challenged or devalued. In university settings, DEI initiatives can (unintentionally) trigger this threat, especially for members of dominant social groups (for example, people without disabilities or white people) who may interpret DEI initiatives such as discussions about privilege and systemic inequality as attacks on their identity. When these moments of discomfort are met with defensiveness, backlash follows.
Still, identity threat isn’t inherently a problem. In fact, it can be a powerful entry point for reflection, learning and growth if universities are willing to treat discomfort not as a barrier but as a pedagogical tool. When people encounter threatening information that challenges their sense of self and oftentimes their unchecked beliefs and values, they can also reflect on and learn from those experiences. By questioning their sense of threat and seeking out new perspectives, they can develop a more inclusive understanding of themselves, others and how they relate to DEI.
At a university in Uganda, a “men’s hub” brought together male employees and students to reflect on masculinity. Through facilitated dialogue, participants examined beliefs such as “men shouldn’t show emotions” or “women exist for male pleasure”. Many updated these beliefs – and reported profound shifts in how they viewed their relationships, work and roles as allies. This transformation unfolded on multiple levels. Some participants revised surface-level beliefs – like recognising that women deserve to be treated with respect in everyday interactions. Others went further, questioning deeply held assumptions that men should dominate and women should submit. In doing so, they rethought the very foundations of traditional gender roles.
Based on our research on disrupting DEI backlash and moving towards learning in organisational contexts, here’s how institutions of higher education can do just that:
1. Create space for identity work and not just policy work
Too often, DEI efforts focus on checklists: updating hiring rubrics, hosting mandatory training or publicising land acknowledgements. These steps are important, but they don’t engage the deeper, affective process of identity reflection that meaningful change requires.
Institutions can take the lead by building structured opportunities for identity exploration into university teaching, staff development and leadership training. For example, case-based faculty workshops or facilitated intergroup dialogues can invite participants to grapple with how their own identities shape their experience of inclusion – and exclusion – on campus. This humanises DEI, transforming it from an abstract initiative to a shared, lived practice.
2. Frame discomfort as a necessary (and shared) learning experience
We often talk about “safe spaces” in higher education, but the real work of DEI often happens in holding spaces, where individuals experience a sense of safety and thus are willing to sit with discomfort and uncertainty. A lack of psychological safety makes people reluctant to express their true perspectives due to fear of negative reactions. Being able to express vulnerability and take risks is central to engaging in learning and disrupting identity threat created by DEI.
University leaders, educators and trainers can help by normalising discomfort as part of the learning journey, rather than framing it as something to be avoided or pathologised. Syllabi, workshops and campus messaging can reflect this orientation, so that discomfort becomes an invitation to engage and not to retreat.
3. Model vulnerability and humility from the top
When university leaders model humility in their own learning journeys – admitting missteps, sharing reflections and remaining open to feedback – they send a powerful message: that DEI is not about being “woke enough” but about being willing to grow.
This messaging helps remove the performance pressure many feel when engaging in DEI work. Instead of policing language or retreating into silence, members of the university community may feel more empowered to ask questions, make mistakes and stay in the conversation. Here town-hall meetings and other avenues for expression may offer university members opportunities to explore their reactions to threat. Leaders can encourage group discussions about DEI in an open and safe forum.
The university is one of the few institutions explicitly dedicated to human development. That mission must extend to DEI. By reframing identity threat as a signal for developmental potential – not of danger – universities can transform moments of backlash into breakthroughs.
In an era of polarisation and fear, this is the kind of leadership higher education is uniquely positioned to offer.
Camellia Bryan is an assistant professor in the organisational behaviour and human resources division of the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia, Canada. Brent Lyons is an associate professor of organisation studies in the Schulich School of Business at York University, Canada.
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