Trump rescinds executive orders protecting diversity, LGBTQ rights Via Reuters

By Bianca Flowers and Daniel Trotta

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump on Monday rescinded executive orders that had promoted diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and promoted the rights of LGBTQ+ people and ethnic minorities, fulfilling promises to reduce protection for the most disadvantaged Americans.

Shortly after taking office, Trump rescinded 78 executive orders signed by his predecessor Joe Biden, including at least 78 measures supporting racial equality and combating discrimination against gay people and transgender.

Shortly before Trump was sworn in as the 47th president, an incoming White House official told reporters that Trump would soon take additional executive action that, for example, would declare the US government it will accept only two people – men and women – who cannot be changed.

Trump’s policies represent a major departure from the Biden administration, which led the implementation of various measures across the federal government. Trump rescinded two executive orders Biden signed on his first day in office four years ago, one that advanced racial equality for disadvantaged communities and another that combats discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.

Trump has rescinded some orders aimed at helping Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans and Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

“This week, I will end the government’s policy of trying to socially engineer race and gender in all areas of public and private life,” Trump said in his inaugural address.

“We will create a color-blind and value-based society. … From today, from now on it will be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female, ” Trump said.

The Trump administration plans to review and eliminate what the official described as “discriminatory programs,” including environmental justice grants and diversity training initiatives.

The rollback of the DEI and Trump’s inauguration coincided with this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. he recalled the human rights leader.

Advocates and civil rights groups immediately vowed to protect minorities and challenge Trump’s agenda.

“We refuse to back down or be intimidated. We are not going anywhere, and we will fight against these dangerous provisions with everything we have,” Kelley Robinson, president of the Campaign of Human Rights, the largest LGBTQ+ rights advocacy group in the US, said in a statement.

Rights advocates said that any DEI and rollbacks of transgender rights implemented by Trump would be a setback to hard-fought efforts to preserve equal policies and undermine the progress made to address discrimination. system that has denied equal opportunities for disadvantaged groups for decades.

“We will continue our relentless efforts to protect the rights of immigrants, fight voter suppression, and confront hate and discrimination in all its forms,” ​​said Asian Americans Advancing Justice. in the sentence.

Many businesses have distanced themselves from the DEI’s efforts, with other DEI initiatives and programs in recent weeks. Meanwhile, companies like Costco (NASDAQ: ) and Apple (NASDAQ: ) have remained steadfast in their commitment to the DEI.

As part of the executive order, federal funds cannot be used to promote “gender ideology,” the official said, a loose term often used by conservative groups to refer to any ideology. promote non-traditional views on sexuality and gender. Rights and advocacy groups consider the term anti-LGBTQ and dehumanizing.

The Trump administration would only accept non-transgender people, and would instruct government employers to use the term sexuality rather than gender, which can refer to gender norms and identities, the incoming White House official said in a recent interview. .

US money will also not be used for medical gender reassignment procedures, the official said without elaborating.

The Trump administration also plans to scale back a major victory for transgender rights under the 2020 US Supreme Court ruling Bostock v Clayton County, in which the high court found that the protection of human rights against discrimination “on the basis of sex” applies to. gender and gender identity.

The attorney general will issue clear guidelines on how to use Bostock, the official said.

Transgender rights have become a controversial political issue in recent years. During the November election, many Republicans campaigned to roll back transgender laws with a strong focus on transgender women participating in sports.

During a pre-inauguration rally on Sunday, Donald Trump said he would take action to “ban all men from women’s sports.”

It was not immediately clear what the executive order would mean for the US military. During his first term, Trump announced that he would ban transgender troops from serving in the military, and his administration stopped hiring transgender personnel. Biden overturned that decision when he took office in 2021.