Does it seem like the celebration of Black History Month this February was a bit lackluster?
Super Bowl ads, praised in recent years for their promotion of so-called diversity, equity, and inclusion, seemed less obsessed with the topic this year. “Super Bowl Commercials Reflect Waning DE&I Commitment in the Ad Industry,” read one headline, its author noting that “the majority of casts, crews and directors behind the 2023 Big Game commercials are white men.” Indeed, after a dramatic increase in racial and sexual minorities in 2020 and 2021, Forbes in January reported that television and streaming advertising is, surprisingly, getting whiter.
Is America approaching “diversity and inclusion” exhaustion? Has our elite establishment’s obsession with all things related to racial and sexual minorities — and, by extension, an ideology defined by victimhood narratives — made the actual celebratory events of our calendar perfunctory and less interesting? When every month seems like Black History Month, perhaps February feels less special.
Diversity and Inclusion Over-Saturation
The signs of a cultural diversity and inclusion over-saturation seem evident in lots of places. Given how aggressively grocery stores in my native Northern Virginia have recently promoted Pride Month and Asian-American and Pacific Islander Month, I expected a big celebration of black culture, cuisine, and black-owned businesses. But to my surprise, I witnessed nothing in my local grocery store to commemorate Black History Month; it was all Valentine’s Day product hawking.
I also expected a significant spike in celebration and coverage of Black History Month in The Washington
