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The anti-DEI Movement is just Jim Crow, Thinly Disguised [1]

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Date: 2025-04-19

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives gained significant momentum nationwide following the 2020 George Floyd incident. Intended to foster equality and representation for marginalized communities, DEI efforts have also faced substantial opposition, with critics claiming that these initiatives constitute discrimination against White people. Like the Jim Crow movement from the turn of the twentieth century, the anti-DEI movement has broad implications in contemporary society and how we relate to others as fellow citizens.

Efforts at securing equal treatment under the law for minorities have a long history of opposition in the United States. After the end of Reconstruction in 1877, violence and intimidation were rampant, targeting African Americans who sought to exercise their newly acquired rights. Lynchings and mass killings were common, as epitomized by the 1921 Tulsa race massacre, where a thriving African American community, known as Black Wall Street, was decimated by a White mob. Similar atrocities occurred in Louisiana, Florida, Texas, and the Carolinas, reinforcing racial segregation and suppressing Black progress.

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s was a pivotal era in the struggle for equality. Grassroots activists, legal challenges, and widespread protests led to landmark legislation, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This period also saw the establishment of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) laws to eliminate workplace discrimination. Despite these advances, opposition persisted, sometimes as violent backlash from those resistant to societal change.

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder, DEI initiatives surged across various sectors, from corporate boardrooms to educational institutions. These programs aim to promote representation, equity, and inclusive practices. They have, however, generated pushback from individuals and groups who argue that DEI constitutes reverse discrimination against White people. This sentiment echoes historical resistance to Civil Rights advancements, suggesting a continuity in the pattern of opposition.

While historical opposition predominantly targeted African Americans, the contemporary anti-DEI movement casts a much wider net. Led by the Trump Administration and some GOP-led state governments, the movement now encompasses immigrants, the LGBTQ+ community, and anyone who disagrees with the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement’s orthodoxy. This expanded list of ‘enemies’ reveals a broader agenda of exclusion and division, reminiscent of the tactics used during the Jim Crow era.

The Jim Crow laws enforced racial segregation and disenfranchisement primarily against African Americans. Today’s anti-DEI movement, while not codified in law—yet—employs similar strategies to undermine efforts at achieving equality and inclusion. The movement capitalizes on fear, misinformation, disinformation, and political rhetoric to galvanize support, drawing parallels to the mechanisms that sustained Jim Crow.

In 2021, Texas lawmakers passed legislation restricting discussion on race and diversity in public schools, arguing that such teachings constitute indoctrination.

Florida’s ‘ Stop WOKE Act ” aims to limit workplace training on racial and gender equity, framing these initiatives as divisive.

In addition to his 2020 executive order banning federal agencies from conducting diversity training (which was canceled by the Biden Administration), in 2025, Trump signed a memorandum banning DEI training in the U.S. Foreign Service

Like Jim Crow, the anti-DEI movement seeks to perpetuate a status quo that marginalizes and excludes certain groups. By expanding its targets beyond African Americans, this movement represents a new iteration of historical resistance to progress. It’s critical that these patterns be recognized and addressed. In the past, mass movements supported by the federal government led to change. In the current environment, the federal government is on the opposing side. It’s left to We the People to mobilize and set things right. Make no mistake about it, while the anti-DEI movement doesn’t wear hoods and robes and burn crosses, it’s Old Jim Crow revived.

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