Scott Galloway claims diversity initiatives lead to ‘reverse racism’

Globally renowned firebrand business commentator, serial entrepreneur and NYU marketing professor Scott Galloway sparked controversy at an Australian conference by claiming diversity, inclusion, and equity initiatives result in a "certain amount of reverse racism."

Galloway's provocative statement came during the Association for Data-driven Marketing and Advertising’s (ADMA) Global Forum in Sydney, themed ‘Elevate for the Future’. The conference encouraged marketers to challenge conventional thinking and prepare for the future of their field. During his keynote address, titled ‘Annual predictions, trends and dynamics for the upcoming 1-3 years’, Galloway revisited his past predictions, analysing their accuracy and introducing a new series of forecasts designed to push marketers beyond the hype.

When asked about previous comments he'd made regarding the "death of the CMO title”, Galloway's response was even more controversial. "I think the only position more dangerous than CMO right now is DEI," he declared to a room full of marketing professionals.

Mim Haysom, the executive general manager of brand and marketing at insurance firm Suncorp Group, moderated the Q&A component of Galloway’s keynote and asked him to elaborate. He replied that when he attended university in 1960, there were just “12 Blacks [sic] at Princeton, Harvard and Yale combined,” so affirmative action made sense.

“We advantage, in the United States, women. Women have taken a tremendous amount of shit, have made less, deserve some advantage. Well, what about non-whites right? They've consistently gotten a raw deal.

“What about gay people? Jesus Christ, we've been persecuting gay people. What about [the] Japanese? Well, we interned them in camps. Where it's gotten to is now DEI officers and affirmative action at corporations and universities are now advantaging 76% of the populace [minority groups and women] and when you're advantaging 76% of the populace, you're not advantaging anybody.

“You're discriminating against the 24% [remaining] and I think that's effectively what has happened here. We've ended up in a weird spot where … the snake is eating its own tail and we have a certain amount of reverse racism and these departments can't be questioned or you're called a racist [sic].”

In June 2023, the US Supreme Court ruled against race-conscious admission programmes at colleges and universities across the country, eliminating the ability of these institutions—both public and private—to consider race as a factor in admissions decisions. Despite this ruling, many argue that such considerations are still necessary to ensure equitable access to higher education.

Galloway, however, believes that while affirmative action is important, it should be focused on socioeconomic factors rather than race. He suggests that colleges should implement initiatives that prioritise students from lower- to middle-class backgrounds, and companies should similarly prioritise hiring "non-elite college graduates."

"I think any race-based affirmative action in the corporate world or in universities causes more problems than it solves at this point," Galloway stated.

Galloway, who delivered his keynote address virtually, went on to share his predictions for the trends that will shape the marketing landscape from 2025 onward, including the anticipated boom of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic.

He also zoomed in on loneliness and masculinity, voicing concern for young men who aren’t dating or socialising, and are instead becoming isolated and violent. He said he’s regularly asked for advice on how to approach young men like this, most often from their mothers.

“Empathy is not a zero-sum game. Civil rights didn't hurt white people, gay marriage didn't hurt heteronormative marriage,” he said.

However, he argued that women’s progress has led to “mating” repercussions impacting young men.

“More single women own homes than men, which is great. Women in urban areas under the age of 30 are now making more money, which is great.

“There are more women globally seeking tertiary education than men, which is great. The number of women who've been elected to parliament globally has doubled and I want to be clear, we should do absolutely nothing to get in the way of women's march upward.

“The problem is that we don't have an honest conversation around mating. Women mate socioeconomically horizontally and up, men horizontally and down, and when the pool of [men] horizontal and up continues to shrink, fewer and fewer people are falling in love and forming households, and this creates loneliness and is bad for the economy.

“How do we have a more productive conversation that recognises, salutes, applauds, and continues the incredible progress women are making while recognising we have to value our young men?”

Galloway, who is currently writing a book about masculinity, also expressed concern around the advent of AI girlfriends, which offer to chat with, and send pictures to, young men. However, he said he is observing progress, despite the doom and gloom. 

“I think we're having a more productive conversation now that's largely been inspired by mothers who see this going on.”