Trump's written a DEI government death sentence. School policies should be next
DEI is in decline. On his first day in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to end "radical and wasteful government DEI programs" in federal agencies.
Trump made the right call. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said he dreamed people would "not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." DEI ideology is a slap in the face to MLK Jr.’s civil rights agenda to treat everyone equally, regardless of the color of their skin.
The good news is Trump isn’t the only leader launching a full-frontal assault on DEI programs.
FLORIDA EDUCATORS FILE FEDERAL LAWSUIT CHALLENGING STATE LAW UPENDING DEI POLICIES
Governor Greg Abbott reminded everyone this month that Texas "banned DEI in higher education and cut funding for any DEI positions" last session. He also just announced on X that Texas "will ban DEI in K-12 grades & cut funding" this year. Republican legislators are already filing bills to do so this session.
You can’t argue with that idea: if DEI programs are too divisive for adult college students, why are these initiatives allowed to indoctrinate young children in primary and secondary public schools?
Shouldn’t this destructive ideology have been banned in schools with young impressionable minds before it was banned in colleges with adult students?
That chronology would have made sense if political decisions were a reflection of logic rather than power. But special interests have a stranglehold on K-12, unlike any other industry or level of education. The largest labor union in the country is the teachers union, and they fight to maintain their monopoly over the public school system.
DEI programs give these special interests another reason to hire more useless bureaucrats and increase revenue from additional dues-paying members. The DEI jobs program in the public school system benefits union bosses who funnel those dollars toward enriching themselves and getting more of their Democrat buddies in office.
This DEI grift that wastes our tax dollars on worthless administrative positions also gives teachers unions – and, by extension, the Democratic Party – a larger voting bloc to push for more of their left-wing political pet projects.
It’s no surprise the teachers union lobbies in favor of DEI in schools.
The Marxist ideology infiltrating our public schools that divides people based on their immutable characteristics – under the guise of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) – would be better described as Divisive Educational Indoctrination.
Texas Representative Brian Harrison, a Republican, told us in a statement that he is "sick of Texas taxpayers having their hard-earned money weaponized against them, their values, and their children by being forced to fund liberal indoctrination in our public schools."
Harrison said, "It’s long past time for the Texas legislature to finally rip DEI, root and branch, out of the public school system."
DEI is now in retreat thanks to elected officials listening to common sense. But top-down regulations on the public school system are not sufficient to keep this harmful ideology at bay.
In January, undercover journalists at Accuracy in Media exposed the executive director of DEI at a Texas school district for saying biological boys could room with girls on overnight school trips on a "case-by-case" basis. Our team also exposed an administrator in Dallas ISD for admitting on video that they can find "loopholes" to the Texas law protecting girls’ sports.
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Accuracy in Media additionally exposed Texas public school administrators for admitting on video to undercover journalists that employees similarly circumvent the state law prohibiting Critical Race Theory (CRT) in classrooms.
It is incumbent upon state lawmakers to do what they can to tweak the public school system so that it is more accountable to families. But bans are not sufficient to protect kids from divisive ideologies such as CRT and DEI when the employees in the system can find loopholes and evade the law. It can be a never-ending game of whack-a-mole, especially for parents who usually don’t have video evidence of what really happens behind classroom doors.
The public-school monopoly needs to feel the pressure from both sides – from the state and the family – for it to start focusing on education rather than indoctrination.
Parents who suspect their kids are being brainwashed with ideologies that conflict with their values should be able to vote with their feet for schools that better meet their needs. That would incentivize the public school system to keep all families happy – regardless of their political background – by focusing on the basics.
The teachers unions won’t be happy about having to compete, but that’s just too bad. The school system wasn’t built for them. It exists to serve children and their families, not the other way around.
Adam Guillette is the president of Accuracy in Media.