Comment: A fortress against the right-wing culture war – economy

Jamie Dimon, the head of the major American bank JP Morgan, perfectly fulfills the cliché of the old white man – not only because he now has white hair: he is also 68 years old and has been a successful manager for decades. His personal fortune is estimated at $2.2 billion. Nevertheless, Dimon has not lost his sight of what is necessary in a modern, enlightened world to hold society together. This became clear again this week his letter to investorswhich he sends to his shareholders once a year and which always causes a stir.

Despite growing resistance, Dimon holds on USA adheres to the goal of a diverse society in which people with different skin colors, denominations and lifestyles not only live peacefully together, but also have, if possible, the same opportunities. There is nothing wrong with recognizing and doing something about social and economic disparities, whether in wealth or health, Dimon wrote, listing the bank’s many initiatives to do so. “We want to give everyone a fair chance at success – regardless of their background.” He hopes JP Morgan shareholders will be proud of this approach.

Dimon controls a group with more than 300,000 employees in more than a hundred countries worldwide Diversity It’s actually anchored in the company’s DNA anyway, so the statements are hardly surprising at first. On the other hand, its corporate headquarters are located in the USA, i.e. in a country whose social centrifugal forces have been enormous for some time, where ultra-conservative right-wingers are increasingly denigrating anything that smells of diversity.

Elon Musk recently railed again on X against the “Woke Mind Virus”

More and more Republican politicians and activists are turning against an influential movement there Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) – diversity, participation and inclusion. Their supporters, in turn, believe that companies should particularly support female, black or homosexual employees. Only in this way could they be a reflection of society and also meet the increasing demands of their employees and customers. Many Republicans, however, call such efforts Pursue, colleges and universities as discriminatory and promoting leftist ideology. Just recently, Tesla boss Elon Musk railed against this again on his Platform X “Woke Mind Virus”. Companies that advocate for minorities in their workforce are engaging in “propaganda.”

In this respect, it would not have been surprising if JP Morgan had simply submitted to the spirit of the times and quietly buried the hot topic. After all, the anti-woke movement is already fighting in court against what it sees as unfair diversity: last year there was even one Atlanta mutual fund sued, which helps black women start businesses. Another group around Trump advisor Stephen Miller has just discovered more than 30 “woken companies” Legal complaints sent.

The fact that Dimon is now once again taking a clear stance on this matter can be interpreted in several ways: The passionate supporter of the Democrats wants to follow the stories of the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump counteract something and consciously paint the image of the multi-ethnic state of America in a friendly manner. Dimon also calls for international cooperation and continued support for Ukraine.

In addition, like no other top manager in the USA, Dimon can afford to publicly represent his position, even in the face of resistance, if necessary. His life’s achievement has been to steer the tanker JP Morgan through all crises for 18 years with almost no accidents – and there were plenty of crises in his era. Thanks to Dimon, the major bank became the darling of investors. In his letter he once again described himself as a passionate capitalist and supporter of the free market. He follows his credo of protecting the bank balance sheet like a fortress. It is therefore good when someone like him takes a public stand – as a credible fortress in the emerging world Culture clash.