The Two Sides of Inclusion Varnishing (And Why Neither One Is the Answer)

There's something happening in our cultural conversation right now that the Tree of Life has been teaching for thousands of years.

Two sides. Both stripping away the varnish. Both convinced they're right. And both completely missing the point.

What Is Inclusion Varnishing?

If you've been here a while, you know this term. If you're new: inclusion varnishing is when the dominant culture makes surface-level gestures toward inclusivity while keeping all the actual power, imagery, and structures for themselves. It's a fresh coat of "diversity" paint over an unchanged foundation.

Like varnish on furniture -- shiny on the surface, same old structure underneath.

For years, the conversation has been about one side of this coin: the performative rainbow logos, the token menorah next to the Christmas tree, the MLK Day email from a company with zero Black leadership. Gestures that look like inclusion and change nothing.

And a growing number of people -- myself included -- have been saying: wipe off the varnish. Do the actual work. Change the structures.

That's one side.

The Strategic Weaponization of Inauthenticity

Here's what's uncomfortable: there's another group also saying "wipe off the varnish."

The current political administration and everyone cheering them on.

They're looking at the same performative gestures and saying: this is fake. This is forced. Wipe it off. And then they're using that as justification to roll back any semblance of inclusion at all -- replacing varnished inclusion with open, unapologetic exclusion and prejudice.

Same action. Completely opposite destination.

One side says: the varnish is hiding a structure that needs to change. The other side says: the varnish is hiding a structure that was fine the way it was.

Both are reacting to the same inauthenticity. Both are stripping something away. And we are tearing each other apart over it. And it breaks my heart - maybe yours, too.

Mercy vs. Severity: The Ancient Mechanics of Modern Conflict

The Tree of Life is more than a spiritual symbol. It's a map -- a map of how everything works, from the cosmos to the human soul to the way societies organize themselves.

And on that map, there are two Pillars.

The Pillar of Mercy on the right: expansion, inclusion, YES. The force that says more, open, welcome, grow.

The Pillar of Severity on the left: contraction, boundaries, discernment, NO. The force that says hold, protect, define, limit.

Here's what the map makes clear: neither Pillar is wrong. Both are necessary. A tree with only roots and no branches dies. A tree with only branches and no roots collapses. You need both.

The problem isn't that these two forces exist in our society right now. The problem is that we've lost the Middle Pillar.

The Middle Pillar Is Balance - And We Don't Have It

The Middle Pillar on the Tree of Life is where integration happens. Where Mercy and Severity meet and become something neither could be alone: wisdom, compassion, truth.

A society navigating well holds both the impulse to expand inclusion AND the impulse to maintain identity and structure - and finds the Middle Path between them. Not one side winning. Not compromise for the sake of peace. Actual integration.

What we have instead is a legal system and a political culture built entirely on right and wrong, good and bad, my side versus yours. Win or lose. Dominate or be dominated.

The Middle Pillar requires something we are desperately short on right now: the willingness to listen to the other side not to defeat them, but to understand what truth they might be carrying. Even when - especially when - you profoundly disagree with where they're taking it.

The False Equivalence Trap: Why Balance Isn't Neutrality

Let me be clear, because this is important.

Saying both Pillars are necessary is NOT the same as saying both sides are equally right. They aren't. Stripping away varnish to do the real structural work of inclusion is not morally equivalent to stripping away varnish to justify exclusion.

The map doesn't say all paths lead to the same place. It says you need both forces in balance to navigate well. When one Pillar dominates completely - in either direction - the whole structure becomes unstable.

Right now, one Pillar is seizing all the power. And the response from the other side, understandably, is to push back with everything they have. And because I fall on the side of inclusion, I support this. But…

Both sides are now operating entirely from their Pillar. No one is tending the Middle- and we need to. Which is why I’m changing my stance from “all push back” to “collaborate” - even though it feels impossibly hard.

What the Map Is Telling Us

The Tree of Life isn't predicting doom. It's showing us where we are on the map - and maps exist so you can find your way.

We are in a moment of extreme Pillar imbalance. And historically, that imbalance eventually forces a return to the Middle - either through wisdom or through the kind of breaking that makes wisdom finally feel worth pursuing.

The work of people who understand this map is not to pick a Pillar and fight from it. It's to hold the Middle. To be the voice that says: the answer isn't all-the-way-open or all-the-way-closed. The answer is integration. The answer is the harder, slower, more demanding work of genuine structural change that doesn't require anyone to disappear. To reach across the divide and find the path forward together.

That work is exactly what real inclusion - not varnished inclusion - actually demands.

You're Here Because You Already Know This

If you're reading this, you're probably someone who's been burned by rigid structures before. Who knows what it feels like to be on the receiving end of a system that never actually had room for you, no matter how shiny the varnish looked.

You know the varnish is a lie. You've always known.

What the Tree offers isn't another side to take. It's a map that shows you why both sides are fighting, where the real work lives, and how to navigate toward something neither side can currently see.

That's the path through.

And it's been mapped all along. 🌳

Wisdom Grove is a space for seekers who are done with the dogma and ready to navigate their spiritual path with clarity. The Tree of Life isn't a religious relic - it's a living map that works regardless of your religious or spiritual heritage. Explore how it works →