We never started with a meritocracy
There's no meritocracy to go "back" to.
We believed the job market was a meritocracy because they told us it was. We believed them. We got jobs. We assumed it was because we had merit.
The presumption was flawed.
Naturally, that produces fear, uncertainty, and doubt. This is sometimes expressed as racism or sexism, but what it really is, is existential panic.