The anti-DEI agenda (1 Viewer)

[zztop]

I thought there was already a topic about DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) but I could not find it in search.
Anyway, it seems one of the main goals for republicans is to destroy anything (even if only vaguely) DEI related

The Anti-DEI Agenda Is Reprogramming America

President Trump’s anti-DEI playbook doesn’t just affect the makeup of America’s workplaces. It also impacts cultural production. Just ask Netflix’s former head of diversity.

www.wired.com

Arlington Cemetery website drops links for Black, Hispanic, and women veterans

The cemetery website unpublished links to lists of notable graves, walking tours and other material about Black, Hispanic and women veterans.

taskandpurpose.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

FCC Chair Brendan Carr is letting ISPs merge—as long as they end DEI programs

Verizon got FCC approval after ending DEI. Now Charter and Cox plan to merge.

arstechnica.com

I don't want DEI to become a political ideological hot potato but part of me wants the next democratic administration to do a complete 180

No DEI program? no government contracts

No DEI program? Extreme audit

And as cynical as it would be I want to see these corporations trip over themselves trying to reinstate their programs while issuing PR written empty statements and airing eye rolling commercials about how important and vital diversity is to (COMPANY NAME HERE) and its mission and community

No DEI? No Mergers

No DEI? No grants

 

[UriUT]

All this anti-DEI resembles a satirical short story I read once.

Harrison Bergeron - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

All these incompetent white men, who didn't develop the skills necessary to compete, want to restrict those who achieved much more than their pea sized brain can imagine. This isn't a free society. It's made to pull others back to their level.

Along with Pete Buttigieg's explanation posted by @Optimus Prime, this one by Mina Kimes does a good job explaining why DEI isn't opening positions for incompetence.

 

[bird]

Kid Rock has hailed President Donald Trump as the “dragon slayer” of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies within the federal government and praised him for ushering “cancel culture” out of the national conversation while acknowledging that, sometimes, “a little spanking” can be necessary.

Speaking to Fox News Digital at his “Rock N Rodeo” event in Arlington, Texas, on Friday, the singer was asked about the state of the culture wars in the United States since Trump returned to the White House in January.

“I think wokeness and DEI and cancel culture is starting to exit the building, and we can thank President Trump for leading that charge once again,” he answered.

“I call him the dragon slayer in that regard, ’cuz he just came and slit the throat of DEI and wokeness.

“There’s always gonna be cancel culture at some level, somebody getting butt sore about this, wants to protest and not buy a product or whatever. You know, me personally, I’m not into seeing people lose their jobs over some corporate decision that was made.”

Drawing attention to his own role in the anti-woke pushback, notably joining the conservative boycott of Bud Light beer in 2023 after the brand featured transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in a commercial, Rock continued: “Sometimes there needs [to be] a little spanking there, like Bud Light had from me and some other people, but at the end of the day, we forgave them, said, ‘It’s all good. Let’s get back on track.’

“I do think it’s exiting the building right now, and hopefully it stays gone, but we should be a merit-based system. The best and [most] hardworking rises to the top.

“I don’t know how we got here, because to me, that’s just common sense, that’s just the ultimate, highest level of common sense that just the best and the hardest workers rise to the top. It doesn’t matter, anything else.”

A long-time supporter and Florida golf buddy of Trump, Rock was invited to sum up the president’s first four months back in the Oval Office.

“My thoughts on President Trump’s presidency? Greatest president ever. I can sum it up like that,” he responded............

Kid Rock applauds ‘dragon slayer’ Trump for ‘spanking’ DEI groups

Rapper applauds president for silencing cancel culture since returning to power but claims his own role in Bud Light boycott two years ago was a necessary anti-corporate protest

www.the-independent.com

Kid Rock and meritocracy are diametrically opposed.

 

[Huntn]

I thought there was already a topic about DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) but I could not find it in search.
Anyway, it seems one of the main goals for republicans is to destroy anything (even if only vaguely) DEI related

The Anti-DEI Agenda Is Reprogramming America

President Trump’s anti-DEI playbook doesn’t just affect the makeup of America’s workplaces. It also impacts cultural production. Just ask Netflix’s former head of diversity.

www.wired.com

Arlington Cemetery website drops links for Black, Hispanic, and women veterans

The cemetery website unpublished links to lists of notable graves, walking tours and other material about Black, Hispanic and women veterans.

taskandpurpose.com

That’s not removing DEI, that’s Ofiicial Racism.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Before diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, became the subject of scorn for the Trump administration, various companies used the acronym. According to a Wall Street Journal report, companies that have nothing to do with diversity, equity, and inclusion are now struggling with their name.

“You’re reading these headlines: ‘DEI is wrong,’ ‘Terrified of the aftermath of DEI,’” David Markley told the Journal. “It’s disheartening when somebody’s, like, bashing your baby.”

Markley sells heat and sound-control equipment primarily to the hot-rod racing industry in Ohio. It’s called Design Engineering Inc.

Markley says it's not the first time his car parts manufacturing company has been mistaken for something else. He used to field phone calls from people asking for Dale Earnhardt Inc., the former race team.

“We finally got over that hump,” said Markley. “Then the new DEI came. It’s just like, oh, God, not again.”

Another company that spoke to the Journal is restaurant-supply company DEI Equipment, owned by Ricardo Gomez.

“I’m a minority that owns a business—it’s not that I’m against it,” Gomez said. “We’re very, very careful about doing anything that will offend anybody from either side.”

His company first started feeling the heat after an online review accused them of “diversity mandates of hurting the U.S. military industrial complex,” the Journal wrote. It took one month and “three unanswered emails later, the reviewer’s post quietly disappeared from the site.”

Gomez named his company more than 20 years ago and has no regrets. He claims he got the idea from the Latin word “dei,” which can mean divine.

According to the Journal, “backlash” over DEI “accelerated after the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to overturn affirmative action. The Trump administration has ramped up efforts to quash the use of race in hiring and other decisions.”.............

'Disheartening': Trump's culture war leaves firms with 'DEI' initials caught in crossfire

Before diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, became the subject of scorn for the Trump administration, various companies used the acronym. According to a Wall Street Journal report, companies that have nothing to do with diversity, equity, and inclusion are now struggling with their name...

www.rawstory.com

 

[zztop]

Justice Department to investigate Chicago after mayor's remarks about hiring Black officials

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said she authorized the probe after Mayor Brandon Johnson's comments about hiring prominent Black officials for his administration.

www.nbcnews.com

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said Monday that it was opening an investigation into the city of Chicago after Mayor Brandon Johnson's comments Sunday highlighting prominent Black officials in his administration.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon wrote in a letter to Johnson posted on X that she had “authorized an investigation” into whether Chicago is “engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination”

 

[fooferdoggie]

Justice Department to investigate Chicago after mayor's remarks about hiring Black officials

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said she authorized the probe after Mayor Brandon Johnson's comments about hiring prominent Black officials for his administration.

www.nbcnews.com

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said Monday that it was opening an investigation into the city of Chicago after Mayor Brandon Johnson's comments Sunday highlighting prominent Black officials in his administration.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon wrote in a letter to Johnson posted on X that she had “authorized an investigation” into whether Chicago is “engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination”

I thought they got rid of that department? or is it whites only civil rights???

 

[Huntn]

Before diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, became the subject of scorn for the Trump administration, various companies used the acronym. According to a Wall Street Journal report, companies that have nothing to do with diversity, equity, and inclusion are now struggling with their name.

“You’re reading these headlines: ‘DEI is wrong,’ ‘Terrified of the aftermath of DEI,’” David Markley told the Journal. “It’s disheartening when somebody’s, like, bashing your baby.”

Markley sells heat and sound-control equipment primarily to the hot-rod racing industry in Ohio. It’s called Design Engineering Inc.

Markley says it's not the first time his car parts manufacturing company has been mistaken for something else. He used to field phone calls from people asking for Dale Earnhardt Inc., the former race team.

“We finally got over that hump,” said Markley. “Then the new DEI came. It’s just like, oh, God, not again.”

Another company that spoke to the Journal is restaurant-supply company DEI Equipment, owned by Ricardo Gomez.

“I’m a minority that owns a business—it’s not that I’m against it,” Gomez said. “We’re very, very careful about doing anything that will offend anybody from either side.”

His company first started feeling the heat after an online review accused them of “diversity mandates of hurting the U.S. military industrial complex,” the Journal wrote. It took one month and “three unanswered emails later, the reviewer’s post quietly disappeared from the site.”

Gomez named his company more than 20 years ago and has no regrets. He claims he got the idea from the Latin word “dei,” which can mean divine.

According to the Journal, “backlash” over DEI “accelerated after the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to overturn affirmative action. The Trump administration has ramped up efforts to quash the use of race in hiring and other decisions.”.............

'Disheartening': Trump's culture war leaves firms with 'DEI' initials caught in crossfire

Before diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, became the subject of scorn for the Trump administration, various companies used the acronym. According to a Wall Street Journal report, companies that have nothing to do with diversity, equity, and inclusion are now struggling with their name...

www.rawstory.com

We’ve been sliding for 4 decades, and now we went over the Cliff. It’s so discouraging, sometimes I feel like losing myself in a fantasy. The other day, I watched the Book of Eli and amused myself, imagining MAGA being aggravated that God would allow a black man to shoot up a town’s mayor and his police force.

 

[Dragon]

We’ve been sliding for 4 decades, and now we went over the Cliff. It’s so discouraging, sometimes I feel like losing myself in a fantasy. The other day, I watched the Book of Eli and amused myself, imagining MAGA being aggravated that God would allow a black man to shoot up a town’s mayor and his police force.

I love that book and film. One of my favorites

 

[Optimus Prime]

Maga’s ‘DEI hire’ taunt is an age-old grievance reignited. And it’s spreading | Gaby Hinsliff

In this new climate, having an enviable job, while not being a straight white man, is grounds for suspicion, says Guardian columnist Gaby Hinsliff

www.theguardian.com

 

[Huntn]

IF you want a CLEAR UNAMBIGUOUS understanding of the MAGNITUDE of the INCOMPETENT, VILLAINOUS nature of Trump and his henchmen, listen to Official Minon Noem flunk her Constitution Exam to make a criminal assertion that Habeas Corpus is the Right of POTUS to kidnap and spirit people out of the USA, outside of the Court System, because he’s a RACIST TOOL.

Noem Incorrectly Says Habeas Corpus Is Trump’s “Constitutional Right” to Deport People

Noem’s comment raised alarm about the administration’s willingness to suspend the fundamental right.

truthout.org

Then you might ask why with all this kidnapping of color going on, why are some racist white S.Africans Immigrants given a red carpet welcome, and our Intrepid Head Felon accuses the S.African President of “white” genocide? See a pattern here? Par for the course, typical Fool’d ya arse slapping.

Trump accuses South Africa of 'white genocide' in meeting with country’s president

During a meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump alleged that there was a genocide against white people in South Africa. Trump played a video purporting to show support for violence against Afrikaners. Ramaphosa said there is “criminality in our...

www.msnbc.com

And if you’re a white racist, sure you’re probably cheering right now, bend me over and have your way with me, cause you know “all my problems” are caused by those darkies stealing my standard of living, not the Capitalists robbing me blind. In MAGA Land 100-195 = A HUGE WIN arse long as I’m drugged with a continuous stream of racist policies and tropes.

 

[Optimus Prime]

And if you’re a white racist, sure you’re probably cheering right now, bend me over and have your way with me, cause you know “all my problems” are caused by those darkies stealing my standard of living, not the Capitalists robbing me blind. In MAGA Land 100-195 = A HUGE WIN arse long as I’m drugged with a continuous stream of racist policies and tropes.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Senior figures in British business have described a chilling effect on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, saying they are being “rebranded” to avoid attracting unwanted political attention.

Five years after the murder of George Floyd in the US shone a spotlight on racial inequality, efforts to create a level playing field in the workplace are facing a rightwing backlash on both sides of the Atlantic.

But experts say many organisations are resisting the attacks by reframing policies previously known as DEI in the US, and sometimes EDI (equality, diversity and inclusion) in the UK.


Paul Sesay, the founder and chief executive of the National Diversity Awards, whose sponsors include Amazon, Auto Trader and HSBC, said: “It’s rebranded to ‘wellbeing’, ‘belonging’ and ‘culture’. Even with roles, it’s no longer heads of DEI, it’s heads of culture, heads of people, heads of wellbeing.

“They’re basically embedding diversity and getting rid of the word – I don’t necessarily see it as a bad thing. When I first started, back in 2003, it was about diversity – and that was the main word – but then, as it progressed, it was inclusion. It’s advancing now to culture, transformation, that kind of thing, as culture affects the whole organisation.”

In the UK, the Reform party has vowed to scrap DEI initiatives from councils it controls, months after the Trump administration began sacking black public servants and ripping up fairness policies.

Experts believe a full-scale rollback is unlikely in the UK, where the Equalities Act and the legal risk of discrimination cases present barriers to turning back the clock.

But some companies, particularly US-headquartered firms, have already scaled back some commitments, and are less keen to celebrate inclusion work publicly.


Sesay said US businesses were finding ways to disguise DEI work so they could still promote the best talent and address inequalities. “American companies have had to change, simply to survive in America. They have to take the word diversity out of absolutely everything. I’ve heard a few firms that say inclusion is allowed within their policies, but the word diversity isn’t.”

Noreen Biddle Shah, who founded Reboot, a campaigning group of senior financial service professionals, to tackle racial inequality in the industry in 2019, said the “landscape feels very different” now.……

Firms ‘rebranding’ diversity initiatives to avoid unwanted political attention

British business figures say many companies in UK and US disguising inclusion policies in face of rightwing attacks

www.theguardian.com

 

[MT15]

 

[Optimus Prime]

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology closed its DEI office last week, following an 18-month assessment of the department's work.

The school confirmed that it closed its Institute Community and Equity Office, known as the ICEO, which described its mission online as "stewarding MIT's values and their interconnections." MIT will also eliminate the role of the vice president for equity and inclusion, who led the department, according to a university spokesperson.

MIT President Sally Kornbluth made the announcement last Thursday, following an 18-month "comprehensive assessment" of the ICEO's work, an MIT spokesperson said in a statement to CBS News.

While President Trump has taken aim at DEI — diversity, equity and inclusion — in government, business and academia, MIT's review began before his return to office. In January 2024, Kornbluth asked staff to advise her "where we're succeeding in supporting our community and where we're falling short."

"MIT is in the talent business," Kornbluth said in a notice to the MIT community. "Our success depends on attracting exceptionally talented people of every background, from across the country and around the world, and making sure everyone at MIT feels welcome and supported, so they can do their best work and thrive."

The closure comes amid a battle between the Trump administration and nearby Harvard University, which intensified this week as the White House took new steps to screen and restrict international students who wish to study in the U.S.............

MIT closes DEI office amid Trump's dispute with Harvard and other schools

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology closed its DEI office last week, following an 18-month assessment of the department's work.

www.cbsnews.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

(NEXSTAR) — A new order issued by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to ensure “the natural and historical resources managed by the Department…accurately reflect American history and not partisan ideology,” invites national park visitors to report aspects of the sites that need repairs and signs or other information that “disparages” Americans.

Burgum’s order stems from an executive order, titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” signed by President Donald Trump in March. That order called on the Interior Secretary to identify any “public monuments, memorials, statues, markers, or similar properties” that have been removed or “changed to perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history, inappropriately minimize the value of certain historical events or figures, or include any other improper partisan ideology” since January 1, 2020.

The executive order also calls for those properties to be reinstated, and to ensure that all other sites overseen by the Department of the Interior “do not contain descriptions, depictions, or other content that inappropriately disparage Americans past or living (including persons living in colonial times), and instead focus on the greatness of the achievements and progress of the American people or, with respect to natural features, the beauty, abundance, and grandeur of the American landscape.”

In response, Burgum has called for a review of properties that have been changed or altered and their reinstatement. The Interior Department oversees the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and other bureaus that oversee the nation’s “vast natural and cultural resources.”

According to a statement shared with Nexstar by the Interior Department, Burgum’s order is only focused on “historical monuments, markers, and memorials altered or removed since 2020.”

“This effort ensures our public lands reflect an accurate portrayal of American history and heritage,” a department spokesperson said. “We remain committed to preserving the integrity of our nation’s historical legacy for future generations. The Department of the Interior has already begun taking first steps towards implementing this Secretary’s Order with more details to come.”

Some federally managed areas were renamed within the last five years. That includes a camping spot in Grand Canyon National Park, a mountain in Yellowstone National Park, and hundreds of other geographic features that were rebranded to remove a derogatory term from federal lands. It’s unclear if those features will revert to their previous names.

Burgum also ordered a review of sites to determine if they have any disparaging content.

As part of this, signage is to be posted at all properties to encourage visitors to report on the “negative” information they find, as well as areas or services within the park that need improvement. Burgum’s order says all signs should include a QR code and the following statement: “(Name of property) belongs to the American people, and (name of land management Bureau) wants your feedback. Please let us know if you have identified (1) any areas of the (park/area, etc. as appropriate) that need repair; (2) any services that need improvement; or (3) any signs or other information that are negative about either past or living Americans or that fail to emphasize the beauty, grandeur, and abundance of landscapes and other natural features.”.................

https://www.dcnewsnow.com/news/us-and-world/national-park-visitors-to-be-encouraged-to-report-negative-depictions-under-new-order/

 

[Optimus Prime]

The Trump administration has joined with two white-owned construction companies looking to end a $37 billion program designed to help minority-owned businesses, saying it is “unconstitutional.”

The Indiana-based companies, Mid-America Milling Company and Bagshaw Trucking Inc., sued the Department of Transportation in 2023 over the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program, arguing that it should be permanently dismantled.

On Wednesday the Department of Justice filed a proposal for a settlement with the DOT to dismantle the program – which was first authorized by Congress in 1983, and serves roughly 49,000 businesses that have been deemed to be disadvantaged.

The program is funded by the federal government but administered by states, and allocates at least 10 percent of government funding for transportation infrastructure to such contracting firms.

The original complaint described the DBE as “the largest, and perhaps oldest affirmative action program in U.S. history” and claimed that the program’s “goals” were in fact “discriminatory barriers” targeting nondesignated racial groups including white Americans.

“The word ‘disadvantaged’ is simply code for women and certain minorities,” the complaint stated, adding that: “Disfavored racial groups must compete with the preferred racial groups on an unequal footing.

“Because the DBE program violates the Constitution’s ‘promise of equal treatment,’ it must be permanently dismantled.”……

Trump team looks to end $37B program designed to help minority business

Two Indiana-based companies, Mid-America Milling Company and Bagshaw Trucking Inc., sued the Department of Transportation in 2023 over the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program

www.independent.co.uk