In January 2025, President Donald Trump issued several executive orders aimed at dismantling diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the federal government and among its contractors. These actions represent a significant shift in federal policy concerning DEI. But for many, the implications of these orders remain murky at best. Here is some context and implications of the orders.
Trump issued two key Executive orders concerning DEI in late January:
Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing (Executive Order 14151). Signed on January 20, 2025, this order directs federal agencies to terminate all DEI-related offices, positions, and initiatives. Agencies are required to provide the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) with a list of all DEI and “environmental justice” positions within 60 days.
Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (Executive Order 14173). Signed on January 21, 2025, this order prohibits federal agencies from issuing contracts to private organizations that enforce DEI frameworks. It also revokes certain provisions of Executive Order 11246, originally signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965, which had mandated affirmative action programs for federal contractors.
Implications for the Federal workforce mandate that federal hiring, promotions, and performance reviews prioritize individual initiative, skills, performance, and hard work, explicitly excluding DEI-related factors.
Perhaps most egregiously (and most impactful for Hampton Roads) is the requirement that organizations contracting with the federal government are required to eliminate DEI programs and affirmative action policies within 90 days or risk losing their contracts.
The mandate is outlined in a section titled “Encouraging the Private Sector to End Illegal DEI Discrimination and Preferences,” which instructs all federal agencies to “take all appropriate action with respect to the operations of their agencies to advance in the private sector the policy of individual initiative, excellence, and hard work.”
In addition, the Attorney General, in consultation with the heads of all “relevant agencies,” is also directed to issue a report within 120 days that contains “recommendations for enforcing Federal civil-rights laws and taking other appropriate measures to encourage the private sector to end illegal discrimination and preferences, including DEI.”
These executive orders have prompted legal challenges and opposition from various groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which argues that the orders represent a deliberate attempt to undo progress on DEI and create new barriers to opportunity.
But some damage has already been done.
Many non-profits and local government agencies that rely on public funding have preemptively discontinued their DEI initiatives. Locally, Hampton Roads Transit last week announced that that they had proactively removed a webpage connected to diversity initiatives with the agency. The Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters also suspended gender-affirming medical treatment for minors, joining some of Virginia’s largest health systems in response to directives from the White House and state officials.
Editor’s Note: Outlife757 is presenting the Fifth Annual Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Roundtable on February 24 from 10AM until noon at Old Dominion University where our panel of local DE&I experts will discuss the implications of these orders and provide concrete ways employers can implement strong DE&I initiatives in their workplace. The roundtable is free and open to the public. Advance registration is required.
