Racial Justice Experts Condemn Trump’s Attack on DEI in Schools as Perpetuating ‘White Delusions’

Activists and education experts are sharply criticizing President-elect Donald Trump’s proposal for “reparations” for so-called “victims” who’re discriminated against in diversity, equity and inclusion teaching programs, also known as DEI.

Trump and Republicans’ goal in eliminating DEI from public education, Johns said, is to “prevent students and censored individuals from engaging in critical thinking in a way that makes it easier to maintain this regime.”

In the video, Trump promised to make use of the Justice Department’s authority to “pursue federal civil rights cases” against schools that “racially discriminate and schools that persist in overt, unlawful discrimination under the guise of equity.”

The president-elect announced that grants from schools promoting racial equality could be taxed and fined. He proposed that “part of the confiscated funds should then be used to compensate the victims of these illegal and unjust policies… that have hurt our country so much.”

While some online have described Trump’s proposal as “reparations” for white people, racial justice advocates explain that the term is misleading.

“It’s really necessary that we do not loosen up with the word ‘compensation.’ He himself didn’t use the word ‘reparations,’ and I feel it is vital that we do not start overusing that term, especially as we proceed to try to coach people on what it means,” said Dr. Marcus Anthony Hunter, author of Radical Reparations: Healing the Soul of a Nation “.

Dr. Johns said Trump’s “restitution” proposal might be higher described as “grievance subsidies” for white people. The scholar and activist said Trump’s renewed attacks on DEI are nothing latest.

“What he did is consistent with what the Daughters of the Confederacy did after the Civil War,” Johns said, referring to the group’s promotion of a false “Lost Cause” ideology that minimized the role of slavery as a reason behind the Civil War and portrayed the Confederacy in a more positive light.

No federal law currently prohibits educational programs deemed DEI, except the ban on race-based admissions, also known as affirmative motion, invalidated by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2023. However, several governors have attempted to ban DEI programs through state-level laws. It’s also unclear whether Trump can actually impose a penalty on school funds as he claims.

Dr. Hunter said Trump’s claim for “restitution” in equity reminded him of a 2023 racial discrimination lawsuit filed by a white student attending Howard University Law School. Although the coed’s claim of being “treated differently” due to his race was the identical released A federal judge allowed his case to be heard under the guise of losing his scholarship on “racial grounds.”

“For a lot of these things, you have to be able to prove verifiable damages,” Hunter said. “So a few of what (Trump) says will occur isn’t possible because people cannot really prove the damage. “It’s also a rhetorical conversation that’s just very dangerous.”

“When it comes to redress for victims, I’m really not sure where they go from there,” James said. “I have not heard of students who have concerns that DEI programs on campuses or at their institutions are discriminatory against them.” She added: “I would like to know more about where they get arguments like victimization.”

Ultimately, advocates warn that eliminating DEI from classrooms will undo what little progress has been made in diversifying schools and raising multicultural knowledge.

“DEI is truly part of how we ensure an inclusive society that prioritizes belonging and allows everyone to thrive safely,” Dr. James said. “So the idea that we are eliminating DEI teachings and principles in schools means that we are trying to divide our society as a whole.”

She continued: “Removing these programs means that we are going to see a scarcity of culturally responsive teaching on the a part of teachers, which implies they’ll not recognize or use instructional materials that teach different histories that reflect different cultures and different identities. “

NBCJC’s Dr. Johns warns that the implications of attacks on DEI and Trump’s proposal to eliminate the Department of Education can have more serious consequences for Black, Brown and LGBTQ students and teachers.

“I even have witnessed and are available into contact with children who experience political persecution that limits their access to care, their access to affirming and supportive educators, their ability to seek out after-school groups and programs where they will be affirmed and know that they’re brilliantly and splendidly done thoroughly as they’re,” Johns said.

He continued: “They have few lifelines that prevent them from having fun, let alone pursuing the option of suicide, which continues to increase in numbers when we think about black youth in general, and then racial and ethnic minority youth who are also members of sexual groups, minority communities.”

“Where do teachers go when they are wrongfully targeted by white actors? Where do we tell people to complain?” Johns asked.

However, Dr. Johns reminds us that public education and the “prison industrial complex” “were never intended to affirm the benefits or otherwise ensure the well-being of black people, which is why we have a long tradition of creating institutions that do this work.”

He added: “I hope that churches, communities, associations and organizations, many of which we show up in ministry, will understand the need to fill this gap in a radically inclusive and loving way.”