On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order named “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” which prohibits affirmative action and racial preference initiatives, including any “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) programs in both federal contracts and universities that receive public funding.
This new order revokes Executive Order 11246, which was enacted by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 and laid the groundwork for Affirmative Action.
The executive order states that its aim is to uphold current Civil Rights laws by eliminating preferences and discrimination based on race and gender that DEI programs may endorse. It also requires the Attorney General and the Secretary of Education to provide guidelines to ensure adherence to the Supreme Court ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which abolished affirmative action in college admissions.
Additionally, Trump’s executive order aims to address DEI-related discrimination in the private sector through civil compliance investigations.
