Critics say the order presents a rollback on civil rights
Donald Trump has just revoked a major employment act that’s been in place for six decades.
It’s been a matter of days since Trump took his oath of office as the 47th President of the United States on Monday (January 20), and he’s already given the green light to some seemingly controversial ideas.
Just hours into his presidency, the 78-year-old signed off on 25 executive orders, which included halting the TikTok ban to blocking immigrants and declaring that there are ‘only two genders’, the latter of which prompted Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde to appeal to Trump to show ‘mercy’ to the LGBTQ+ community and immigrants.
He also signed an order on Tuesday (January 21) which proposes an end to ‘radical and wasteful government diversity, equity and inclusion’ (DEI) programs.
Now, the president is accelerating his plan to dismantle DEI plans, having revoked the Executive Order 11246 (1965) and sending the message that government employees responsible in the Department of Labor will see their DEI programs removed ‘immediately’ while they face paid leave, reports The New Republic.
The law aims to protect workers from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin which civil rights advocates have long argued presents a level playing field for underrepresented minorities such as LGBTQ+ people while addressing issues like systemic racism.
Donald Trump had his inauguration ceremony on Monday (January 20) (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The 60-year-old order was introduced by then-President Lyndon Johnson to weave anti-discriminatory practices into US federal government contracting – just two years after Martin Luther King Jr gave his ‘I Have A Dream’ speech.
Trump’s order, which calls DEI initiatives ‘illegal discrimination and preferences’ with a view to ‘restore merit-based opportunity’, is aiming to slam the brakes on private companies employing such programs and from hiring on the basis of race and sex.
It has also asked government agencies to identify any organizations that could be subject to a civil investigation.
Martin Luther King Jr giving his infamous speech in Washington, 1963 (Getty Images/Bettmann)
The order states: “As a part of this plan, each agency shall identify up to nine potential civil compliance investigations of publicly traded corporations, large non-profit corporations or associations, foundations with assets of 500 million dollars or more, State and local bar and medical associations, and institutions of higher education with endowments over 1 billion dollars.”
The move has already caused a public outcry and widespread condemnation.
Basil Smikle Jr, a political strategist and policy advisor, commented: “There’s this clear effort to hinder, if not erode, the political and economic power of people of color and women.
“What it does is opens up the door for more cronyism.”
But others, such as Louisiana Senator John Kennedy (Republican), supported the move, telling USA Today reporters: “The best way to stop discriminating against people on the basis of race of gender is to stop discriminating against people on the basis of race and gender.
“The truth is the American people don’t think about race or gender merely as much as some folks in Washington want to pretend.”
A statement released by The White House reads in part: “[R]oughly 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, critical and influential institutions of American society, including the Federal Government, major corporations, financial institutions, the medical industry, large commercial airlines, law enforcement agencies, and institutions of higher education have adopted and actively use dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI) or ‘diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility’ (DEIA) that can violate the civil-rights laws of this Nation.”
