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Abstract

This Article will show that the most progressive diversity initiatives taking hold in the business community are facially neutral in their approach, merit-driven, and fundamentally culture-conscious (as opposed to race-conscious). These initiatives do not allow for any racial preference or gender preference and draw any such bias not from the inherent values of diversity but from the largely segregated pre-existing corporate tradition: hiring culturally aware minorities unleashes value because they bring insights previously unavailable to segregated businesses. In other words, White males can be and are hired in the name of cultural diversity when they bring cultural insights to the business. Nevertheless, these initiatives also serve to pave the way for traditionally excluded groups (including African Americans, Hispanics, and women) to participate in American economic life in a more meaningful fashion, and in far greater numbers than in the past.

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