WJA Chapter Leaders Resign as Fallout From DEI Remarks Snowballs

New York—The leaders of at least five of the 17 regional chapters of the Women’s Jewelry Association have resigned as a result of recent remarks made by WJA National Board President Gabrielle Grazi regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

In a recording of WJA’s 2024 national annual membership meeting held Dec. 10, then President-Elect Grazi is heard saying, “In hindsight, our content did not always reflect the complexion of our membership and not of our broader industry. Our sincere efforts to be inclusive created a perception of exclusion by many longstanding and founding members of the jewelry community. We sincerely apologize for this misstep. Everyone is welcome in our community, and every individual is diverse.

“As a women’s business organization with a 501(c)(6) designation, we will be focused on diversity of thought and not comment or create content around social justice issues in the future.”

Grazi’s statement struck a nerve with many WJA members, who promptly expressed concerns about her choice of language and the implications the message could have for the organization. 

In the weeks that followed, members reached out to WJA’s national board for clarity on the remarks and soon began making requests, including for an apology, a retraction of the statement, and most recently, Grazi’s resignation.

Mounting dissatisfaction with the way WJA handled their concerns has led a growing number of chapter leaders to step away from the organization altogether.

The WJA Chicago chapter board was the first to step down, followed by the boards of the Northern California (NorCal), San Diego, Miami, and Seattle chapters.

National Jeweler was told Wednesday evening that the board of the Portland chapter also has stepped down and is working to verify that information.

The Chicago board announced its resignation via Instagram on Jan. 14, a little more than a month after Grazi’s remarks, a result of board members disheartened by her statements and dissatisfied with the national board’s justification, which they called “inadequate.” 

WJA Chicago chapter President Viviana Langhoff told National Jeweler that, after hearing Grazi’s statements, her chapter contacted their regional director for further explanation.

They were told the group referenced in the remarks as feeling excluded were Jewish WJA members who felt the organization had shown support for other minority and disenfranchised groups in the industry but refused their requests to make a statement surrounding antisemitism or the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel.  

In its resignation letter, the board of the WJA Chicago chapter addressed this explanation, writing, “There is not a necessary link between WJA’s DEI initiatives and its response to October 7th. Not only does it fail to address the concerns of inclusion and the visibility of both our Jewish and Palestinian sisters, it is furthering division among WJA.  

“Instead of choosing to have a robust healing discussion or create programs that celebrate all members, the national leadership has used this as an excuse to become ‘color blind,’ declaring that we are ‘all diverse.’ That is a cheap and easy fix.”   

The Dec. 10 meeting was recorded and published to WJA’s website for members to view.  

An individual who attended the virtual meeting and spoke to National Jeweler on condition of anonymity said she had an immediate reaction to the statement and after the meeting, received calls from other concerned WJA members “right away.”  

She said by the next day, the recorded video was inaccessible on the site, though it was later reposted. 

National Jeweler reached out to Grazi on Jan. 15, the day after WJA Chicago’s announcement, requesting an interview.  

She said she was working with WJA’s internal communications team to address chapters leaders and members.  

On Jan. 26, she forwarded National Jeweler an official email update from the WJA’s national board of directors—the board’s first official public message to membership since the annual meeting in December—and declined to comment further. 

The email stated that WJA would not be making any changes to its DEI initiatives, as some members had inferred, and it announced that WJA board member Donna DeLucia will serve as chair of the organization’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) committee for 2025.  

DeLucia succeeds Tracey Carswell, WJA Miami chapter founder and past president. 

Carswell previously co-chaired the committee and was set to lead it, effective this month, but, along with about a dozen other national board members, they have chosen to step down in the wake of Grazi’s remarks. 

"I have been a champion of WJA, even with there being gaps ... It’s really sad. It was one of the hardest choices I’ve ever made to step down from the national board and step down from a role and committee where I had really hoped I could make a national, global difference,” they said. 

Carswell said they’re “mourning” the decision to resign but plan to continue advocating for DEI in other ways. 

Another individual involved with WJA who also spoke on condition of anonymity said no national board members knew of or approved Grazi’s words before she spoke at the annual meeting. 

On Jan. 21, a week into the fallout that started with the WJA Chicago board’s resignation, Grazi spoke with a group of chapter leaders. 

An anonymous source said during the meeting, there were calls for Grazi to resign, and Grazi informed them a vote had already taken place regarding her removal.

This source and others confirmed to National Jeweler that the vote was in favor of Grazi remaining WJA National board president.

The same source also said she felt that the Jan. 26 membership email from WJA National “grossly mispresented” the tone of the chapter leaders meeting. 

The email reads in part, “On a chapter leaders call earlier this week, Gabrielle expressed her sincere apologies for the division and discord her remarks caused. She took full responsibility for her mistake, and we appreciate her not only recognizing that mistake, but also owning up to it in front of our chapter leaders.”

However, the source said Grazi did not outright apologize during the call and instead compared the situation to the issue of abortion (now a states’ rights issue following the repeal of Roe vs. Wade), explaining that each chapter could decide whether or not it wants to keep DEI initiatives.

The WJA Seattle chapter’s resignation letter, shared to Instagram on Thursday, described the apology offered in both the leadership call and the Jan. 26 follow-up email as “insufficient” because it “places the blame on people’s interpretation of Gabrielle’s remarks, rather than acknowledging that the remarks were simply wrong and never should have been made.”     

The letter concludes, “We do not feel that the National board values our input, as they have continued to stand by Gabrielle Grazi as president in spite of clear feedback that our chapters cannot move forward under her leadership.

“The disbanding of numerous chapters and resignation of so many leaders will do tremendous harm to WJA’s reputation and financial stability.” 

With the leaders of multiple chapters resigning, along with numerous national board members, it is unclear how WJA moves forward from here. 

WJA National did not respond to questions from National Jeweler regarding its plans for the chapters in which all the leaders have stepped down, though as of Wednesday, the listing for the WJA Chicago chapter appears to have been removed from the WJA website. 

Jaffe Management, which WJA hired last year to manage its day-to-day operations, did not respond to requests for comment either. 

The New York-based company’s contract with WJA is up in about 90 days, and it has given WJA notice that it will not be renewing.

When asked if members of the WJA Chicago board would ever return to their positions, Langhoff said it’s not likely.

“As of now, we don’t have any plans to return with the current leadership in place,” she said. “We need to keep things in perspective. This is 100 percent a volunteer position, and we would all rather put our energies and talents into projects and organizations that align with our values.”

In addition to the five chapters in which the boards have resigned—WJA Chicago, NorCal, Miami, San Diego, and Seattle—there are, according to the WJA website, chapters in: Austin, Boston, Colorado, Dallas, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York (Metro), Ohio/Kentucky, Philadelphia, Providence, Toronto, and the Twin Cities. 

WJA NY Metro, the organization’s largest regional chapter, said in a statement shared on Instagram Tuesday that while it would not be stepping down, its “work is ongoing and we continue to be united in holding WJA National accountable to the promises made to members in their January 24th email statement.” 

National Jeweler contacted the remaining 11 chapters via Instagram on Wednesday. No account had responded as of press time. 

The controversy over Grazi’s remarks comes at a time when there is nationwide pushback against the DEI initiatives instituted in the wake of George Floyd’s May 2020 murder, starting with the federal government.

Shortly after taking office, President Donald Trump targeted DEI programs, signing executive orders that directed federal DEI staff to be placed on paid leave (and eventually laid off) and revoked decades’ worth of previous executive orders aimed at increasing diversity and addressing discrimination.

Some retailers, such as Target, Amazon, and Walmart, also are rolling back diversity initiatives as a result of conservative backlash, though others, like Costco and Apple, are standing by their policies. 

DEI programs, some of which date back to the Civil Rights Movement, seek to promote fair treatment and equal opportunities for all people. 

The concept has expanded and evolved over the last few decades, and current studies show that well-designed DEI programs positively impact company performance, leadership, and employee engagement.