trump executive order first day in office
© Carlos Barria/ReutersPresident Donald Trump holds a document on the day he issues executive orders and pardons in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., January 20, 2025
The Trump administration took a sledgehammer to progressive diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives Tuesday night with executive orders designed to root racialist ideology out of the federal government and American institutions at large.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order overturning President Lyndon Johnson's 1965 executive order creating race-based hiring requirements for federal contractors. Paired with that is a memo from the Office of Personnel Management placing all DEI employees on leave and shutting down DEI programs and offices.

"President Trump campaigned on ending the scourge of DEI from our federal government and returning America to a merit based society where people are hired based on their skills, not for the color of their skin. This is another win for Americans of all races, religions, and creeds. Promises made, promises kept," said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.


In addition to overturning affirmative action for contractors, Trump's executive order declares DEI illegal and advises corporations and federally funded universities to end all illegal discrimination, with DEI falling under that umbrella.

Likewise, Trump took action to rid the Federal Aviation Administration of DEI hiring practices and return the agency to a merit-based system. Trump instructed the Secretary of Transportation and FAA administrator to end preferential hiring protocols for certain demographic criteria and revoke DEI programming inside the agency.

On Monday, Trump's first day in office, he signed executive orders directing agencies to terminate DEI programs and review employment practices to root out DEI in all its forms. He also repealed the Biden administration's "equity" executive order for the federal workforce and other executive actions meant to advance "equity" for minority groups.

Trump's executive actions have the potential to significantly reshape federal civil rights law and could spell the end of DEI across American institutions. Large corporations, elite universities, news organizations, and many other powerful facets of American business and culture adopted DEI during the summer 2020 Black Lives Matter riots and racial reckoning.

Over the past few years, conservatives have waged a legal and political battle against DEI that started gaining traction after the Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that race-based college admissions programs violated the 14th Amendment. Conservative groups have filed a flurry of lawsuits alleging that corporate DEI programs violate anti-discrimination laws by explicitly creating programs for people with certain racial and gender characteristics. Numerous red states have also passed legislation outlawing DEI from universities and other public institutions.

More broadly, conservatives believe DEI programs obsessively focus on people's immutable characteristics and assign blame to certain groups, rather than prioritizing individual character and meritocracy. DEI practitioners and proponents assert that it is necessary to make up for historical injustices to support people from marginalized backgrounds and train others to hold their same views.

Prior to Trump's resounding electoral victory this past November, several large corporations including John Deere, Tractor Supply, Ford, and Lowe's walked back DEI initiatives following conservative pressure. The slow corporate retreat from DEI continues after the election, with McDonald's and Meta being among the companies to abandon DEI ahead of Trump's inauguration.

Thus far, Trump is fulfilling his promise to use the federal government to combat DEI and end illegal discrimination. To make it last, Trump will likely need support from Congress and the legal system to ensure his efforts to end DEI have a long term impact.