Canada built a fair society based on merit. Why are we abandoning it?

DEI is undermining the foundation Canada was built on: the belief that people succeed through merit and effort

Canadians pride themselves on living in a fair society.

Most believe people should be judged by what they do, not by who they are. That principle is called merit. Working hard, earning your place and contributing to the country are the foundations of Canada’s prosperity and stability.

It is also an idea that resonates deeply across political lines. Whether Canadians lean left or right, most still agree that fairness means the same rules for everyone.

But that principle has been steadily eroding over the past decade.

One reason is the rapid spread of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) across universities, corporations and governments. While its stated goal is fairness, the evidence increasingly suggests the opposite. In practice, DEI policies often take the form of diversity hiring targets, mandatory training programs and funding requirements tied to equity goals.

Instead of uniting Canadians, DEI risks dividing us. That raises an uncomfortable question.

Is DEI helping Canada, or harming it?

At its core, DEI represents a shift away from equality of opportunity toward equality of outcomes. That distinction matters.

Canada’s traditional model has been simple. Everyone should be treated equally under the law. Everyone should have a fair chance to succeed. From there, results will vary depending on talent, effort and circumstance.

DEI rejects that premise. Instead, it pushes institutions to meet diversity and equity targets set by governments and by the institutions themselves. That often means giving preference to applicants from designated groups while limiting the opportunities available to others.

Universities provide perhaps the clearest example of how this shift away from merit-based principles is playing out. Institutions once devoted to open debate and the pursuit of truth increasingly find themselves policing speech, ideology and hiring practices.

You can see it in university hiring ads that explicitly limit eligibility to certain identity groups. You can see it in research funding requirements that demand applicants demonstrate commitment to DEI ideology. And you can see it in the growing administrative bureaucracies dedicated to enforcing these policies.

Many Canadians would be surprised at how deeply these systems have embedded themselves in public institutions.

Supporters argue these policies are necessary to correct historical injustices. That is an important discussion. Canada has not always lived up to its ideals of equal treatment and opportunity.

But acknowledging past injustice does not automatically mean these policies work as intended.

The evidence that DEI programs achieve their intended results is far from settled. In the corporate world, for example, claims that diversity initiatives improve business performance remain widely debated.

Some research even suggests the opposite. Rather than reducing tension between groups, mandatory diversity training and identity-based policies can increase resentment and social division.

If that is true, the consequences are serious.

Canada is already facing deep fractures, regional tensions, declining trust in institutions and growing political polarization.

Instead of strengthening social cohesion, these policies risk encouraging Canadians to see one another first through the lens of group identity rather than shared citizenship.

That is the last thing the country needs.

One province has begun pushing back. Alberta has taken steps to dismantle DEI bureaucracies in public universities. The provincial government directed institutions to review and scale back diversity offices and related programs.

The deeper problem may be institutional inertia. Once bureaucracies are created and funded, they rarely disappear on their own.

So what should Canada do?

First, we need honesty. The debate around DEI is often framed as a choice between compassion and prejudice. That is a false dichotomy. Canadians overwhelmingly support fairness and opportunity for everyone.

Second, we should return to principles that have historically worked. Equal treatment under the law. Merit-based hiring and admissions. Policies that help individuals facing genuine disadvantage, without imposing blanket identity preferences.

Finally, Canadians need to ask tougher questions about the institutions they support. Universities, governments and corporations all depend on public trust. That trust requires transparency and accountability.

The goal should not be to divide Canadians into competing identity groups. It should be to strengthen a shared sense of citizenship.

At its best, Canada succeeds when people believe they are playing by the same rules.

Defending that principle may be one of the most important challenges facing the country today.

David Leis is President and CEO of the Frontier Centre for Public Policy and host of the Leaders on the Frontier podcast.