On Jan. 21, President Trump issued an executive order titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.” The order was a strongly worded denunciation of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). The document points to three reasons for the administration’s strong stance against DEI.
First, DEI initiatives “violate the text and spirit of our longstanding Federal civil-rights laws.” Those laws, including the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, forbid discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The order contends that DEI can violate both the text and the spirit of civil rights laws.
Second, DEI policies “also undermine our national unity, as they deny, discredit, and undermine the traditional American values of hard work, excellence, and individual achievement in favor of an unlawful, corrosive, and pernicious identity-based spoils system.” President Trump is concerned that many progressives weaponize DEI to gain ground in the culture war.
Finally, DEI can “threaten the safety of American men, women, and children across the Nation by diminishing the importance of individual merit, aptitude, hard work, and determination when selecting people for jobs and services in key sectors of American society, including all levels of government, and the medical, aviation, and law-enforcement communities.” The administration contends that in some fields ending merit-based hiring and advancement not only potentially violates the law, but that it actually undermines human flourishing.
Trump’s executive order calls for four actions. First, it orders the end of all DEI programs in the federal government. Second, it encourages the private sector to move away from DEI. Third, it directs law enforcement agencies to combat DEI initiatives that contradict civil rights legislation. Finally, it directs the attorney general and secretary of education to jointly issue guidance to all state and local educational agencies that receive federal funds so they can ensure compliance with civil rights laws. Additional executive orders have further addressed the dismantling of DEI.
The progressive response has been predictable, painting Trump and his supporters as racist and arguing that DEI promotes social justice. The reality is that DEI has been on the retreat since the latter half of the Biden administration, after peaking during the first half of Biden’s presidency. Biden’s term began shortly after the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, all of which captured the nation’s imagination and raised concerns about the persistence of racial injustice.
Click Here to Read More (Originally Published at World Magazine)
Nathan is a professor of faith and culture and directs the Institute for Faith and Culture at North Greenville University in Tigerville, S.C. He is the senior fellow for religious liberty for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, is a senior fellow for the Land Center for Cultural Engagement, and is a senior editor for Integration: A Journal of Faith and Learning. He also serves as teaching pastor at the First Baptist Church of Taylors, S.C.
