The White House has ordered all federal diversity offices to close and place staff on paid leave by Wednesday evening, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed.
A memo from the US Office of Personnel Management directed department and agency heads to notify all Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) staff of their placement on administrative leave by 12:00 am local time on Wednesday.
The directive comes as part of sweeping changes implemented on Trump’s first day of his second term as president, which included the repeal of 78 executive orders issued by his predecessor Joe Biden.
Trump signed new executive orders on Monday that limit gender recognition to two categories and terminate government diversity programmes, fulfilling campaign promises that characterised such initiatives as discriminatory against white people, particularly men.
“The Biden administration forced illegal and immoral discrimination programs, going by the name ‘diversity, equity and inclusion’ (DEI), into virtually all aspects of the federal government, in areas ranging from airline safety to the military”, stated one of the executive orders ending these initiatives.
During his campaign, Trump targeted transgender recognition, particularly regarding women’s sports and gender-affirming care for minors.
The new orders overturn several Biden-era decrees that had promoted diversity and equality in government, workplaces and healthcare, as well as LGBTQ+ rights.
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