Diversity Equity and Inclusion

Within the last two months, both the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the armed services have followed Trump Administration directives to narrow or eliminate protections for transgender individuals.

EEOC Withdraws Lawsuits.  Aligning with Executive Order 14168 (Jan. 20, 2025) announcing that the federal government will recognize only male/female as the two “immutable biological classifications,” the EEOC has deprioritized transgender discrimination charges and moved to dismiss at least seven lawsuits brought on behalf of transgender employees.… Continue Reading

In our previous post, we discussed the nationwide temporary restraining order issued by the United States District Court for the North District of Illinois that temporarily prevented the Department of Labor from requiring federal contractors to certify that they do not operate any diversity, equity, or inclusion programs that violate the Trump Administration’s recent Executive Orders (“Certification Provision”).… Continue Reading

On March 27, 2025, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted a nationwide temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing the Department of Labor (DOL) from requiring federal contractors and grant recipients to certify that they do not operate any diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs that violate the Trump Administration’s recent DEI related Executive Orders.… Continue Reading

On April 1, 2025, the American Alliance for Equal Rights (“AAER”) filed complaints with the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) alleging three tax-exempt private foundations—the Gates Foundation, the Lagrant Foundation and the Creative Capital Foundation—have engaged in racial discrimination by excluding white citizens from benefits and opportunities based on their race. Each complaint requests that the IRS open an investigation into the activities and tax-exempt status of the foundations.… Continue Reading

On March 24, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the appointment of Catherine Eschbach as Director of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), the agency charged with overseeing regulation and enforcement of affirmative action laws for government contractors and subcontractors. Eschbach signaled a shift in the agency’s mission, stating the OFCCP “will restore a merit-based system to provide all workers with equal opportunity.”… Continue Reading

On March 19, 2025, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the release of two technical assistance documents which are “focused on educating the public about unlawful discrimination related to ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI) in the workplace.” The EEOC and the DOJ released a joint one-page technical assistance document titled “What To Do If You Experience Discrimination Related to DEI at Work,” and the EEOC also released a longer question-and-answer technical assistance document titled “What You Should Know About DEI-Related Discrimination at Work” (collectively, the “Guidance”).… Continue Reading

Last week brought further developments related to the Trump administration’s efforts to curtail what it views as illegal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. A federal court denied the Trump administration’s motion to stay a preliminary injunction blocking the enforcement of most elements of President Trump’s Executive Orders 14173 Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity and 14151 Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing (collectively, “the DEI Executive Orders”).… Continue Reading

Reverberations from the Trump administration’s recent executive order (EO) denouncing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices intensified on February 21, 2025, when a federal judge in Baltimore issued a nationwide preliminary injunction on enforcement of much of the EO. The ruling comes on the heels of a guidance memo issued earlier this month by 16 Democratic state attorneys general in which the state AGs argue that DEI best practices are not illegal.… Continue Reading

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives are facing unprecedented challenges. From the rise in reverse discrimination claims to the coordinated legal and political attacks on both public and private DEI programs—particularly in the wake of the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (SFFA) decision—and now the implications of the recent Trump administration Executive Orders, organizations must navigate an increasingly uncertain landscape.… Continue Reading

Pamela Bondi, the newly sworn in Attorney General at the Department of Justice (DOJ), issued a flurry of memos and directives in her first 24 hours on the job. Building on President Trump’s executive orders related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), Bondi issued two memos that direct the DOJ’s attention and resources to ending “illegal discrimination and preferences” – (1) Ending Illegal DEI and DEIA Discrimination and Preferences; and (2) Eliminating Internal Discriminatory Practices.… Continue Reading