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The repeal of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion under Trump leadership

President Donald Trump puts an end to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies across federal departments by executive order on his first day in office.

Mckee Writing

In an executive order (EO) entitled “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing” (EO 14151) signed on Jan. 20, President Trump ordered the termination of all programs, mandates and policies that promote the ideals of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).

DEI policy was originally introduced through executive order by former President Biden on his first day in office. Biden’s executive order, “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government” (EO 13985),  “recognized that, although the ideal of equal opportunity is the bedrock of American democracy, our laws, public policies, and institutions too often exacerbate disparities or deny equal opportunity to individuals and communities.” In President Trump’s executive order, Biden’s policy is described as “illegal and immoral discrimination programs.”

Through the repealing of DEI policy, the executive order appoints the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russell Vought, to review and revise “all existing Federal employment practices, union contracts, and training policies or programs to comply with this order. Federal employment practices, including Federal employee performance reviews, shall reward individual initiative, skills, performance, and hard work and shall not under any circumstances consider DEI.”

In a fact sheet released by the White House Press Office regarding Trump’s executive order, it states, “This Executive Order reaffirms these values [individual dignity, hard work and excellence] by ending the Biden-Harris Administration’s anti-constitutional and deeply demeaning ‘equity’ mandates, terminating DEI and protecting civil rights.”

More recently, on Feb. 21, U.S. District Judge Adam Abelson issued a preliminary injunction against multiple provisions of the executive order. An injunction is a special court order which compels a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. Preliminary injunctions are given before a trial (because of this, they are rarely given) with the additional requirement that the party asking for the injunction is likely to succeed on its merits.

Abelson argues that the order failed to define DEI terms, making itself too vague for federal employees to reasonably determine their compliance. Abelson also noted that the order could potentially discourage businesses, organizations and public entities from openly supporting diversity, equity and inclusion.

These effects are already being seen throughout the American markets. Forbes  published a frequently updated list of companies that cut their DEI programs and/or policies. One example from this list, dated Feb. 26, is the American film production and distribution company Paramount. Forbes reports, “Paramount will no longer use diversity targets—tied to race or gender—in hiring, and the company has begun removing DEI language from its website, the New York Times and other outlets reported, citing a company memo in which Paramount executives cited Trump’s anti-DEI executive orders.”

However, news organizations and publications are not the only ones reporting on corporate DEI repeals. In the days following President Trump’s executive order, thousands of social media users have taken to platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and X to call for the boycott of companies that scale back their DEI initiative. These companies include Target, Walmart, Amazon, Tesla, Google and many others.

Supporters of the boycott have also encouraged consumers to shop at Costco and other retailers who have continued their commitments to diversity efforts despite Trump’s executive order.

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Love is Like Poetry

Love is like loose hair and lip gloss, Predictably Messy, Consequential of my own actions, And yet I find myself picking it time and time again

Love is like walking through a dimly lit parking garage at midnight, Some are understandable to your fears, And others are think of you as paranoid

Love is like a crowd cheering your name

Love is like being sick in the head

Love is like when a broken AC unit finally kicks back on

Love is like an arrow being guided by fate

Love is like an estate sale or an abandoned attic finally being pealed open

Love is like messy buns and chapstick

Love is like mistletoe

Love is like being followed by the National Symphony Orchestra as Hisaishi’s Merry go round of life is bellowed from brass and woodwind pipes

Love is like the first day above 60 degrees after a long freezing winter

Young love is like a clown learning to juggle, While old ancient love is like graceful tightrope walkers

Love is like when the sky looks fake, like it’s straight from a painting and not reality

Love is like that feeling when your about to sneeze, or when you have to hold in a cough

Love is like praying for hope and happiness

Love is like running through the forest, free as a bunny rabbit

Love is like curling up under the blankets on a freezing night

Love is like getting your blood drawn by a vampire

Love is like getting triple snake eyes in monopoly

Love is like fireflies twinkling in flower fields

Like finding wild strawberries in your backyard

Like the falling leaves and sunflowers

Love is birch bark and newspaper

Love is like an unsent letter never to be mailed

Love is like a tire swing

Like walking past a river at sunset, and the only thing you can hear are the birds chirping and the frogs splashing

Like the wafting scent of pine and oak radiating from a carpenter's shop

Love is like seeing your dog after a long day of work

Love is like a paycheck

Love is like wishing on a thousand shooting stars at once

Love is like a fire truck racing to it’s scene

Love is like ice cream after the championship win

Like fried food at the county fair

Like peanut butter and jelly or a grilled cheese

Love is like a bowl of hot soup when your sick

Love is like laying on rooftops

Love is like being invited to a secret sleepover after the birthday party

Love is like the perfect autumn breeze

Love is like small talk in the grocery line

Love is like coupons and stacked clearance sales

Love is like standing guard across a drawbridge

Love is like finding the purse you thought you lost

Love is like unknotting your favorite necklace

Love is your heart stopping at the vibration of your cellphone

Love is like a beach ball being swept out to sea, children running after as the wind keeps on pulling

Love is like a song being stuck in your head

Love is like walking on water

Love is like a playoff game

Love is like twirling ballerinas and piquing across the room

Love is like roller skating

Love is like an 80s song

Love is like digging your feet into hot sand

Love is like a double rainbow

Love is like graduation

Love is like that moment before anyone goes to the dance floor

Love is like windchimes and extra sweatshirts in the backseat of your car

Love is like reapplying sunscreen

Love is like forcing a horse to water

Love is like killing a lady bug when you think it’s a fly

Love is like a hematite ring

Love is like staying up til midnight for an album drop

Love is like forgetting you had homework until 20 minutes before it’s due

Love is like being push into the center of a dance circle

Love is like a strawberry spring

Love is like a book, pages worn from use

Love is like painting you can’t help but circle back to

Love is like newspaper clippings and posters plastered walls

Love is like graphic tees and tote bags

Love is like comfy shoes and heels that click

Love is like jingling key chains and buzzing lights

Love is like volunteering without knowing the task

Love is like a group of middle schoolers

Love is like an elderly game of bingo

Love is like running the mile while your friends walk it

Love is like curly hair and pigtail braids

Love is like tied shoelaces

Love is like socks matching shoes

Love is like color coded notes and rainbow highlighters

Love is like scoring a 75 on an exam you swore you failed

Love is like scrunchies and loose hair ties

Love is like flying in a plane for the first time

Love is like whale watching

Love is like heavy backpacks

Love is like asking for a helping hand

Love is like winning a 1v5

Love is like running late

Love is like arriving on time

Love is like squeaking brakes

Love is like flags flying in the wind

Love is like frozen finger tips

Love is like working through an injury

Love is like braiding your friends hair

Love is like owls hooting at midnight

Love is like seeing a peacock on your roof

Love is like chirping morning crows

Love is like letting your real laugh fly

Love is like having back to back good hair days for a week

Love is like unexpected compliments

Love is like blushing so hard you can’t think

Love is like kicking your feet and throwing your phone

Love is like catching yourself in the reflection of a window pane

Love is like bowling a perfect game

Love is like building a chicken coop

Love is like maple candies and cough drops

Love is like memorizing for an exam

Love is like black on black on black

Love is like a trip to the mall

Love is like wearing white after labor day

Love is like bright yellow police tape

Love is like watching your shadow instead of your step

Love is like gentle reminders at sunrise

Love is like the sun crashing into the sea scape

Love is like looking up at the stars of the country side after months in the city

Love is like recognizing someone by the shape of their car

Love is like seeing a ghost

Love is like drinking salt water

Love is like rinsing sand off your body after a day at the beach

Love is like climbing into a car that’s been baking in the afternoon sun

Love is like a mosh pit at a rock concert

Love is like hot air balloon rides and diamond rings

Love is like never wanting to put your pen down

Love is like you and me and us