President Trump ordered the Department of Education to revoke pro-LGBT guidance promoting transgenderism and homosexuality in students, and the department announced that it has removed hundreds of DEI-related materials in response to the Trump administration’s policies.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (LifeSiteNews) -- The Trump administration is taking action to remove diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and LGBT ideology from public education.
In his executive order on Monday declaring that there are only two sexes and banning federal funding for gender ideology, President Donald Trump ordered that the Department of Education (DOE) rescind previous pro-LGBT guidance, including a 2021 “back-to-school message” for so-called “transgender students” from the Departments of Justice, Education, and Health and Human Services.
Other revoked documents include:
- “2024 Title IX Regulations: Pointers for Implementation” (July 2024);
- “U.S. Department of Education Toolkit: Creating Inclusive and Nondiscriminatory School Environments for LGBTQI+ Students”;
- “U.S. Department of Education Supporting LGBTQI+ Youth and Families in School” (June 21, 2023);
- “Departamento de Educación de EE.UU. Apoyar a los jóvenes y familias LGBTQI+ en la escuela” (June 21, 2023);
- “Supporting Intersex Students: A Resource for Students, Families, and Educators” (October 2021);
- “Supporting Transgender Youth in School” (June 2021);
- “Letter to Educators on Title IX’s 49th Anniversary” (June 23, 2021);
- “Confronting Anti-LGBTQI+ Harassment in Schools: A Resource for Students and Families” (June 2021);
- “Enforcement of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 With Respect to Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Light of Bostock v. Clayton County” (June 22, 2021);
- “Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Students” (June 9, 2021)
Trump also signed an executive order on Monday ordering the termination of all DEI programs and policies in the federal government, which he declared “illegal and immoral discrimination” and “immense public waste.”
In response to Trump's orders and initial guidance from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the Department of Education announced on Thursday that it has "removed or archived hundreds of guidance documents, reports, and training materials that include mentions of DEI from its outward facing communication channels."
"The Department also put employees charged with leading DEI initiatives on paid administrative leave," it said in a press release.
"These review efforts will continue as the Department works to end discrimination based on race and the use of harmful race stereotypes, both within the agency and throughout America’s education system," the department added.
Among other actions, the Department of Education has recently dissolved its previous Diversity & Inclusion Council formed under President Barack Obama; dissolved its Employee Engagement Diversity Equity Inclusion Accessibility Council; cancelled ongoing DEI training and service contracts totaling over $2.6 million; withdrew the department's "Equity Action Plan"; placed department staff involved in implementing the Biden administration’s DEI programs on paid administrative leave; and identified for removal more than 200 webpages of the Department of Education that featured DEI materials and pushed "harmful ideological programs" to schools.
“Pursuant to OPM guidance, the Department will continue its comprehensive review of all agency programs and services to identify additional initiatives and working groups that may be advancing a divisive DEI agenda, including programs using coded or imprecise language to disguise their activity,” the press release said.
The Trump administration has also taken other steps against LGBT and woke ideology, including banning "pride" and Black Lives Matter flags at U.S. embassies.
