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EDMONTON — The president of the University of Alberta says the decision to rebrand its diversity, equity and inclusion policy was not influenced by critics of the initiative in North America.
Bill Flanagan says the university in Edmonton officially renamed its policy this month to “access, community and belonging” after consultations with more than 1,000 members of the campus community, including students, faculty and staff.
“We have to be frank that some of the language around DEI can be seen by some to be polarizing,” Flanagan said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
“But what’s really driving this is not me reading the paper about what’s going on in the United States … this change in language is one that really originated from our own community.
“This was not a result of external matters.”
Although the policy’s name is different, he said, its fine print is not set to see a “dramatic shift” and more consultations are underway.
He said he believes the university is the first major Canadian post-secondary institution to make the change while others are also considering a rebrand.
In the United States, diversity programs have become a source of ire since a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision declared race-based affirmative action programs in colleges unconstitutional.
A wave of diversity offices on American campuses in Republican states have shut down.
Several corporate giants have also halted their diversity initiatives, including McDonald’s and Walmart.
Diversity opponents say the practice leads to discrimination and promotes left-wing ideology, while supporters say it helps level the playing field for women and people of colour.
In Canada, Alberta’s governing United Conservative Party has signalled its support for the anti-DEI movement.
“Any post-secondary institution that maintains a DEI office, policy or equivalent shall lose government financial support,” states a policy proposal that passed at the UCP’s annual general meeting in November.
Flanagan said the University of Alberta decided to begin consultations last summer over its diversity policy because it was time for a change.
He said the university’s vice-provost used recordings of the consultations to generate a “word cloud,” which found most participants mentioned “access, community and belonging.”
“To those who might be skeptical of what we’re trying to do, I would say it’s important that we listen to our university community members,” he said.
“A lot of progress was made, but it was time for a refresh.”
Marcie Hawranik, founder and president of Calgary-based Canadian Equality Consulting, said rebranding diversity programs is trending in Canada in response to what’s happening in the U.S.
“The majority of our clients are non-profits, universities and government, and everyone’s talking about it,” she said.
The University of Alberta’s rebrand appears “superficial,” she added, as the policy’s replacement terms may be less polarizing but really aren’t that different.
Diversity initiatives have existed since the U.S. civil rights movement in the 1960s and evolved through the labour movement of the 1980s and the recent #MeToo movement, Hawranik said. Canadian and American governments, corporations and schools adopted diversity policies in earnest after George Floyd, a Black man, was killed by a white Minneapolis police officer, sparking protests worldwide.
“What it’s always really been about is fairness in workplaces, about anti-harassment and discrimination policies, accessibility for people with disabilities and any initiatives that foster employee retention and build inclusive cultures,” said Hawranik.
She said the University of Alberta’s rebrand seems to give into the growing momentum against DEI and to be an attempt to build a better relationship with the provincial government.
“It’s unfortunate,” she said.
“A lot of (anti-EDI) arguments are based on misinformation around meritocracy, that somehow if you implement EDI targets you’re not using merit anymore, which has been debunked numerous times.”
Quinn Benders, president of the Non-Academic Staff Association, representing about 6,500 staff at the University of Alberta, including janitors, lab technicians and library workers, said he also thinks that the university is trying to “stave off any other potential funding cuts” by the province.
“It is concerning,” he said.
“I want to commend (the university) on their commitment to this work, but I do hope that this doesn’t signal a diluting of accountability.”
He said the diversity initiative on campus has improved the university’s relationship with Indigenous staff, for example.
“I find it disappointing that we are in a time where we have to rebrand any kind of work around equity, fairness and justice within a workplace or within society.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 8, 2025.
Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press
