For a fleeting moment in mid-2020, corporate America was poised to do what years of civil rights activism and the first Black president had been unable to accomplish: change the economic outlook for Black people in America. Executives at some of the country’s largest companies were suddenly saying they were committed to racial and social justice, starting with internal commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
“I think companies can play a big role here — companies have to do more,” Dell Technologies Inc. founder Michael Dell said on June 2, just over a week after the murder of George Floyd. “For four centuries Black and African-American women and men have experienced many forms of social injustice and discrimination,” Visa Inc.’s then-CEO Al Kelly said on an investor call that July. “It is offensive. It is frustrating and it’s unacceptable. It must stop.”