9

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump issued an executive order to end diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices in federal agencies. The directive places all DEI personnel on paid administrative leave and mandates the closure of related offices and programs.

The White House confirmed that DEI staff must be placed on leave by 5:00 PM EST on Wednesday. Following this, all DEI offices and initiatives are to be terminated within 60 days. Trump’s order criticized these programs as “dangerous, demeaning, and immoral.”

Swift Action to Fulfill Campaign Promises

President Trump has moved quickly on several pledges since his inauguration, including a crackdown on DEI initiatives. In his inaugural address, he vowed to build a “color-blind and merit-based” society.

A separate executive order issued earlier called for all DEI offices and roles to be dismantled within two months. Trump argued that DEI policies undermine civil rights laws and prioritize group identities over individual merit.

The executive order emphasizes rewarding individual effort in federal hiring, promotions, and performance evaluations. It also directs the attorney general to recommend ways for private companies to reduce DEI-related initiatives.

Fallout and Opposition

Unions and civil rights advocates have condemned the executive orders. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), representing 800,000 federal workers, expressed concerns over rising pay disparities and loyalty-based hiring. National Federation of Federal Workers President Randy Erwin called the actions an “attack on non-partisan civil servants.”

Critics warn of broader consequences. Revoking a civil-rights-era order banning discrimination by federal contractors could allow businesses to bypass diversity requirements. Civil rights attorney Les Alderman cautioned this would make workplaces more vulnerable to bias.

Some companies, including Walmart and Meta, have recently scaled back DEI efforts. Others, like Apple and Costco, continue to defend their programs.

Conservatives, however, celebrated Trump’s actions. Yukong Mike Zhao of the Asian American Coalition for Education described DEI programs as “racism in disguise” and praised the order as progress toward a colorblind society.

Despite its intentions, critics argue that the previous administration’s efforts to expand DEI roles were underfunded and ineffective. Alvin Tillery, a political scientist and DEI trainer, warned that eliminating these initiatives entirely could erase hard-fought progress. “We’re going from underfunded efforts to none at all,” he said.