Ohio State cut my DEI job. It's a betrayal of our social progress. | Opinion
DEI belongs to all of us. Its principles of equity, inclusion and respect are the cornerstones of a just society. We must protect them with everything we have.
In 1968, 34 young people at Ohio State University refused to accept a world built on exclusion.
They stood in Bricker Hall and demanded a better future – a future with Black faculty, fair housing and a place for African American studies.
They paid the price with indictments, expulsions and years of struggle. But they left us a gift: the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, which for 55 years has opened doors of opportunity that were once slammed shut.
The closure of ODI marks more than the end of an institution; it is a betrayal of the courage and sacrifice of those who came before us.
It unravels decades of progress and erases the tangible impact of initiatives like the Morrill Scholarship and the Young Scholars Program, which have provided hope and opportunity to countless students. Are we so blind to history, so indifferent to justice, that we can stand by as these legacies are dismantled?
DEI is about all of us
Too many see diversity, equity and inclusion through a distorted lens, believing it exists only to uplift racial minorities or LGBTQ+ individuals.
That belief is not just wrong – it is a failure of compassion.
DEI is all of us.
It uplifts the veteran who has sacrificed so much and now seeks belonging in civilian life. It supports the rural student striving to overcome generational poverty. It champions the disabled professional breaking barriers in their field. It empowers the first-generation college student daring to rewrite their family's story.
DEI is not about division – it is about connection. It is about ensuring that no one is left behind, that every voice is heard, and that every person is treated with dignity. To dismantle DEI is to dismantle ourselves – the very values that make us human.
It is a fight for humanity, for dignity, and for the collective soul of our society. At this pivotal moment, we are faced with a choice that will define us: Will we rise to the challenge of justice and compassion, or will we falter into silence and complicity?
DEI initiatives are not merely programs – they are lifelines that transform lives and bridge the gaps of inequality. To tear them down is to abandon the dream of equity, and with it, the people who depend on it.
DEI's fall warns of a greater collapse
When DEI is stripped away, the impact is deeply personal.
It is the student who no longer has a mentor to guide them through the labyrinth of higher education. It is the professional who feels unsupported, unseen and out of place in their workplace. It is the doors that once opened to opportunity now closed, as hope crumbles into despair.
And make no mistake – this is only the beginning. What we see now is the first crack in a dam that has held back generations of inequity and exclusion. If we allow DEI to crumble, everything it has built will collapse into a heap of rubble, forgotten and buried.
The bridges we have fought so hard to build, the opportunities created, the lives changed – all will be erased. The world will look as it did before, stark and unforgiving, and the progress we have made will become a distant memory.
History judged the Ohio State 34. What will it say about you?
History is not kind to those who remain silent in the face of injustice or complicit in its perpetuation. It will not forgive those who blindly follow without questioning or those who trade humanity for convenience.
It will remember the inaction, the indifference, and the apathy. But it will also remember the brave – the ones who stood up, who spoke out, and who fought for what is right even when the odds were against them.
The OSU 34 were judged harshly in their time, but today we honor their courage.
They show us that while the arc of justice may be long, it bends only because of those willing to push with all their might.
Now it is our turn. Will we rise to the occasion, or will we allow ourselves to be remembered as the generation that let it all fall apart?
Silence on DEI is a betrayal
This is not a time for neutrality.
Neutrality is complicity. Silence is betrayal. If we believe in justice, if we believe in the dignity of every human being, we must act. We must fight for DEI – not as a policy, but as a moral imperative, as a reflection of the kind of world we want to leave for future generations.
DEI belongs to all of us. Its principles of equity, inclusion and respect are the cornerstones of a just society.
We must protect them with everything we have. We owe it to the OSU 34. We owe it to the students and employees whose futures hang in the balance. And we owe it to ourselves.
This is the moment to lead with empathy, to act with compassion, and to stand with courage. Let us not falter. Let us not be silent. Let us rise. Because the fight for DEI is the fight for the soul of our society. And it is a fight we cannot afford to lose.
Marchem Pfeiffer is among 16 Ohio State University employees told their positions are being eliminated in response to President Donald Trump's DEI executive orders. This column originally appeared in the Columbus Dispatch.