Not much has changed. That is the stark reality for Black representation in corporate America today. Since the very inception of workplace diversity programs decades ago, Black Americans remain largely underrepresented in executive positions.
When workplace diversity training first emerged in the mid-1960s, Rohini Anand and Mary-Frances Winters explain that it was often implemented as a means for employers to proactively avoid lawsuits resulting from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which made employer discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin and many other identifiers illegal. These trainings evolved over the years, shifting away from simple legal compliance goals to prioritize integrating women and people of color into existing corporate cultures, which were largely homogenous.