Against a backdrop in which companies, universities and others are pulling back from support for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, the League of Women Voters of Washington is stepping up its efforts.   

Earlier this month, the LWVWA board of directors adopted a new long-term initiative to support democracy and guarantee consideration of underrepresented communities in its work at both the state and local League levels. 

The decision to launch the new initiative does not mean DEI is a new development for the League, LWVWA President Karen Crowley emphasized. National League by laws feature a DEI policy to which the LWVWA is “fully committed, both in principle and in practice,” Crowley said. 

But new pressure on organizations, companies and universities to delete DEI policies and dismiss concerns about inequality have prompted many people to become unsure of their rights and their place in the United States, she said. 

LWVWA director Sasha Bentley, a co-director of the initiative with director Roberta Soltz, said, “Our goal is to listen to and learn from people whose voices aren’t usually heard in elections or in civic life.” 

The second goal is to bring more people into the fold. “Because once we do the work to become a place where anyone can go to learn, engage, and lead in elections and civic life, people will join us. And we will share power and leadership and center collaboration.” 

Bentley has 17 years of experience in nonprofit and corporate operations and human resources with the last seven focused on social justice and systems change. “The League has always stood for informed participation and fairness. Those principles don’t change with the political winds. What’s being called ‘DEI’ is, at its core, about ensuring equal voice and access.”  

Furthermore, standing firm in a commitment to equal voice and access isn’t partisan, Bentley said. “It’s patriotic.” 

LWVWA director Soltz, a biologist by training, said it is difficult to pinpoint the degree to which underrepresented groups are absent from participatory government in Washington. But, while the state’s racial diversity is increasing, she said a change is not necessarily being seen in those being elected to political office.   

The League, too, Soltz said, has tended to attract retired, enthusiastic white women, a “monoculture” of sort.   

“Just as variation is the heart of natural selection, embracing cultural, social and physical diversity will strengthen democracy and improve our resilience to a rapidly changing world.”  

Crowley offered this observation: “The ultimate intention of all DEI efforts is to create a culture and society where all voices are valued, respected, invited, and included.  

“Democracy is, at its core, a governing structure that creates true power and agency for all those living within its borders,” she said.