Mere hours after returning to The White House, Trump authorized 25 executive orders, including the suspension of the TikTok ban, modifications to immigration laws, and a pronouncement affirming ‘only two genders’.
Among his most contentious actions was the proposal signed on Tuesday (January 21) to terminate ‘radical and wasteful government diversity, equity and inclusion’ (DEI) initiatives.
The president is fast-tracking his agenda to dismantle DEI programs, having rescinded Executive Order 11246 (1965) and communicating that federal employees in the Department of Labor will see their DEI initiatives dismantled ‘immediately’, with some facing paid leave, according to The New Republic.
The legislation aimed to shield workers from discrimination due to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin.
Proponents have long contended that it ensures fairness for underrepresented groups, including LGBTQ+ individuals.
Trump’s order to revoke this seeks to prevent companies from hiring based on race and gender.
The directive includes: “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 order has drawn significant criticism online, with one Twitter user commenting: “Good for straight white males. Bad for everyone else.”
There has been a widespread public appeal against the order’s implementation.
Basil Smikle Jr, a political strategist and policy advisor, remarked: “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.”
However, not everyone opposes Trump’s changes. Louisiana Senator John Kennedy (Republican) expressed to USA Today reporters: “The best way to stop discriminating against people on the basis of race or 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 nearly as much as some folks in Washington want to pretend.”