When Words Disappear, So Do Scientists: How the DEI Backlash Threatens Science and Its Future
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The scientific community is facing a critical juncture. The growing backlash against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in STEM is not merely a shift in discourse—it is a targeted effort to redefine the boundaries of scientific participation and knowledge production. This paper examines how the removal of DEI language from policies, funding frameworks, and academic institutions serves as a mechanism for reinforcing exclusionary structures that have long marginalized underrepresented groups in science. Through a historical and policy-based analysis, this paper demonstrates how previous waves of ideological resistance to inclusivity in academia have led to detrimental outcomes for scientific progress. The perspective argues that the erasure of DEI is not just a rhetorical shift but a fundamental restructuring of power in STEM, one that threatens the very foundation of scientific inquiry.
