This country isn't a melting pot. Think of this country as a stir fry. That's what this country should be. A place where people are appreciated for who they are.

At UPS, my first experience with what we now call DEI—and back then was simply Affirmative Action—was an eye-opener. After graduating from Virginia Tech with a degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering, I was accepted into a new Management Trainee Program at UPS in Parsippany, NJ. This pilot program aimed to bring in college-educated talent to elevate the company as it moved into a new era. From what I could gather, the program was a huge success, and I earned a number of accolades as I progressed from trainee to full management. But the role wasn’t quite what I’d expected. I had been told that while I would start in operations to get my footing, I’d eventually shift into an engineering role within the region. About a year in, however, the regional office I worked in was consolidated, and I found myself anchored in the hub operations. 

While I was respected in that role and did well, the operations environment wasn’t what I’d signed up for. I hadn’t gone to college to spend my days in warehouses, tearing up dress shirts on equipment or breaking up jams. After five years at UPS, I moved on to pursue a career in the Department of Defense, but the experience there left a lasting impression—particularly my first brush with DEI initiatives, which began sometime around 2001.

The first instance was in a meeting called by our District Manager, a young Black man who was well-regarded as tough and no-nonsense. He’d worked his way up and had the credentials to back up his position. I was invited to join the meeting, along with about ten other division managers, as an observer. The District Manager opened the session by saying that our division wasn’t meeting diversity targets, and in order to comply with corporate initiatives, they would be promoting certain individuals regardless of merit or seniority. I’ll never forget his words, spoken bluntly: "You’re going to see some people promoted to levels higher than they deserve." He also gave a veiled warning, advising the room to “see these guys coming and walk the other way.” It was jarring but also a reality that we weren’t to openly discuss.

When the list of promotions came out, it felt like a magic trick that fooled no one; jaws hit the floor. It was a complete smokescreen, and though it didn’t affect me directly, I could see the frustration in the ranks. Most of the people being “promoted” weren’t particularly sharp or experienced, and the general consensus was that they were placed there to meet quotas. But this was UPS in the early 2000s—freshly public and flush with cash from their 1999 IPO. Many in management had become wealthy overnight and simply didn’t care enough to challenge anything, hence the new wave of trainees. For me, as someone new to the corporate world, this was my first taste of DEI in practice. I didn’t speak up because I was low on the ladder, but even then, I remember wondering: Are we really solving the problem, or just masking it?

Working in Parsippany’s hub operations gave me even more exposure to DEI’s effects, particularly on hiring practices. We had a high turnover rate in the hub, hiring about nine part-time workers per shift each week, with around 280 people on each shift. These were part-time union positions, backed by Teamster benefits for workers and their families. Yet, despite these benefits, an average of seven out of nine new hires didn’t make it past their first paycheck. It was frequently referred to as a “welfare-to-work” program, as UPS even covered the cost of transportation from Newark and surrounding areas through NJ Transit to get workers on site.

To improve morale, UPS threw monthly barbecues for the hub staff, with free food and drinks. During one of these events, I decided to step outside and work the grill myself, just for a break. The District Manager happened to be there, too. As I was grilling, a hub worker came up, looked at his burger, and said, “Yo bro, this shit ain’t cooked. I need my shit well done,” and then spit on the grill. While I didn’t take it personally, it was still a shock to see such a response to free food. 

Our District Manager had seen the whole thing, and I could tell he was fuming. As he approached, I thought he was going to rip into the worker. Instead, he pulled me aside, put his arm around me, and in a quiet but blunt tone said, “If I never see another N****r in my life, it won’t be too soon.” I was stunned. Here was a Black man, an accomplished leader who had undoubtedly faced bias himself, revealing a frustration so raw that I was left speechless.

These experiences at UPS left me questioning the effectiveness of DEI initiatives as they were being rolled out. They seemed well-intentioned on the surface but lacked substance in execution, leading to frustration and distrust even among those they were meant to support. And while I wasn’t affected directly by these moves at the time, these instances laid the groundwork for what would become a more complex relationship with DEI throughout my career.