Former President Donald Trump pledges to eliminate all “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” (DEI) programs across the federal government to “rigorously enforce” the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action in college admissions, according to prepared remarks obtained by Breitbart News.
On Thursday, the Court held that racial preferences in college admissions violate the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause.
As Breitbart News reported:
While the Fourteenth Amendment applies only to state governments — which includes state and local public universities — Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also extends racial discrimination to institutions that accept federal tax money, such as in grants and tuition aid. That applies to almost every private university.
Students For Fair Admission filed a number of lawsuits against public and private schools. The Supreme Court eventually took two of them: a challenge to the admissions policy of the University of North Carolina (UNC) under the Fourteenth Amendment and a challenge to Harvard’s policy under Title VI.
The Supreme Court held 6-3 that UNC’s policy is unconstitutional and held the same regarding Harvard’s policy by a 6-2 vote. (Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson recused herself from the Harvard case.) Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, joined by all the conservative and moderate justices.
Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, and Amy Coney Barrett, who Trump appointed, sided with the majority.
Trump’s pledge to eliminate DEI policies will come during his speech at the annual Moms for Liberty summit.
“To rigorously enforce yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling, I will eliminate all ‘Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion’ programs across the entire federal government,” Trump’s remarks say.
Despite saying it “will comply” with the Court’s decision, Harvard University reiterated its commitment to “diversity” in education.
“The Supreme Court’s decision on college and university admissions will change how we pursue the educational benefits of diversity — but our commitment to that work remains steadfast. It is essential to who we are and the mission we are here to advance,” Harvard University President-elect Claudia Gay said in a video statement.
However, Trump also plans to direct the U.S. Department of Justice to pursue civil rights claims against institutions that engage in “unlawful racial discrimination.”
“And I will direct the DOJ to pursue Civil Rights claims against any school, corporation, or university that engages in unlawful racial discrimination. We will restore a society based on Equality, Liberty, and MERIT,” Trump’s remarks say.
Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter.
