Texas colleges are phasing out DEI

The erosion of great diversity, fairness and inclusiveness has begun. Earlier this week, the University of Texas System announced that it was suspending new DEI policies and requiring all campuses to report on current DEI procedures.

UT System Board of Trustees Chairman Kevin Eltif insisted in a statement earlier this week that the school system celebrates and welcomes diversity on campus Austin, American statesman reported.

“I also think it’s fair to say that some DEI efforts have deviated from the original intent recently and are now imposing demands and actions that have rightfully raised our policymakers’ concerns about these efforts on campuses across our state.” he continued.

The news is the latest sign that the rising tide of DEI efforts, which surged in the wake of the 2020 social justice protests, may now be starting to wane. With Gov. Greg Abbott at the helm, Texas has tried to keep up with Florida in addressing the so-called revival in education and beyond.

DEI’s efforts are focused on expanding representation and creating jobs where people from historically marginalized groups are treated fairly. But critics argue that some campuses have actually begun to discriminate against employees and job applicants who disagree with higher education’s pro-DEI views.

Gary Bledsoe, president of the Texas NAACP, noted in an email that the US Department of Education’s Civil Rights Division has made it clear that such DEI programs are legal. He also said the University of Texas Law Department developed the programs, likely with the help of a private attorney.

“There is simply no reason to suspend any such program unless you intend to discriminate against and harm black and brown citizens,” he wrote.

“The language may be a little less overt, but the gist of the recent action by the Governor and the Board of Regents is simply a reworking of the same types of discriminatory plans that denied us admission to the University of Texas in the first place. he wrote. “The message is clear, we don’t want you here.”

In a February 6 memo, Abbott’s office told state universities and agencies that DEI’s hiring policy was illegal, but many legal experts and state legislators dispute the claim.

According to the memo, Texas A&M University at College Station said it has adjusted its hiring practices since the memo passed. Texas Tribune. Texas Tech University also recently announced a policy overhaul following its biology department’s emphasis on DEI in hiring.

Conservatives are likely to welcome such moves.

Speaking to the state Republican Party earlier this month, Texas Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick pledged to protect college students. His plan? “Erase” DEI programs at the college level.

“You have a lot of liberal leftists teaching our kids all the bad things about America,” he reportedly said during a conference call. “We need to know and learn from our past and our sins. But we are a great country and we are a great state. And capitalism worked. Not socialism.”

Patrick and Abbott argue that the DEI undermines merit-based hiring practices by ensuring the same outcome for everyone. Tucker Carlson of Fox News also regularly opposes the DEI’s efforts, arguing that some programs “overtly promote intolerance”, i.e. intolerance towards white people.

“It is remarkable that we are having these discussions in this country in the 21st century.” — David Hinojosa, civil rights attorney

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Civil rights lawyer David Hinojosa, who grew up in San Antonio, recently defended a college admissions case in the US Supreme Court. He said that many floriculture students face systemic inequalities and often “in underfunded and under-resourced schools, they are confronted by a deck.”

According to him, the concept of a diverse reception is criticized, as is the idea that diversity is good for work and society.

“It is noteworthy that in our country in the 21st century there are such discussions that should have stopped back in 1954, but today they are being revived,” he said.

He added that the governor should be held accountable for his reckless statements about DEI. Abbott represents the entire state, not just the Republican Party, and “should be much more accountable to the general public.”

Hinojosa also pointed to the 2020 uprising against racial injustice following the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. Many universities have pledged to embrace diversity and fight inequality, he said, drawing criticism from conservatives, including former President Donald Trump, who sought political gain by portraying diversity as a threat to white Americans.

According to Hinojos, the pursuit of more racial diversity in public servants is not in itself illegal. And DEI training can help teachers, for example, recognize and test their biases in the classroom.

“To suggest that such training somehow violates any law or the Constitution is outrageous,” he said. “This is the epitome of political reputation and, frankly, an indication of the tactics used by white supremacists and segregationists in those days to ensure that white people in America continue to have an advantage over others solely because of their race and perceived superiority. ”