Letters | 21 June 2018

Song of myself

Sir: As a disabled writer, I thoroughly despise the idea of being the beneficiary of a publisher’s tokenistic diversity initiative (‘When diversity means uniformity’, 9 June). If I’m going to achieve success, I’m going to do so on merit alone. In spite of the added challenges I face as a man on the autism spectrum, the notion that I might be treated differently from any other writer is an affront not merely to my dignity but to everyone else’s.

Lionel Shriver is absolutely justified in her condemnation of what appears to be a thinly veiled attempt by Penguin Random House to enforce equity dogma in the publishing domain. It’s important to note that equity is not the same as equality of opportunity. In fact, it inevitably means the unequal, disparate treatment of individuals based on their category membership in order to ensure equality of outcome. Potentially restricting the high achievements of some to ensure the representation of others who happen to be from minority backgrounds is not only deeply unjust, but also an insanity that will end up stifling creativity in the publishing industry.