DEI

Affirmative action began in 1964 with good intentions like many government programs but in time morphed into something it was trying to prevent. The original ruling said employment cannot discriminate based on race, color, religion and national origin. Most everyone was in agreement with the objective of the law but when the Department of Labor began to enforce the law they went too far. When congress does not follow up with oversight, agencies tend to over do things. They decided that employers must give preferential treatment to minorities. This was the practice until the Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that this type of hiring was, in and of itself, discriminatory. In the early 2020’s the writing was on the wall that affirmative action was on the way out so certain groups, inspired by the George Floyd murder, began what is now called Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). This was affirmative action under a new name. Early in his second term Trump issued a number of executive orders to dismantle DEI practices in all areas that receive government funding.