Congress axing Office of Diversity and Inclusion slammed as ongoing Republican attack on ‘woke’

“This is another example of the extreme right prioritizing politics and exclusion over opportunity,” said ReNika Moore, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s (ACLU) Racial Justice Program.

The U.S. House of Representatives has dissolved its Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) amid ongoing efforts from Republican lawmakers to slash diversity programs across the nation.

ReNika Moore, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s (ACLU) Racial Justice Program, told theGrio that this is “distressing.”

“This is another example of the extreme right prioritizing politics and exclusion over opportunity,” said Moore. “The House of Representatives should really live up to its purpose and represent everyone who calls the United States home.”

Jason Greene, president of the Congressional Black Associates, said that this was the “natural progression of things we’ve seen over the past few years.”

“We’ve seen far-right extremists attack the Black Lives Matter movement, critical race theory, and an attack on being ‘woke,’” said Greene. “This was just a natural progression of where things were going … so I’m not surprised that they are now attacking diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).”

Svante Myrick, president of People For the American Way, told theGrio that this move is “political, shortsighted and stupid.”

“It’s very useful for Congress to have an office whose function is to make sure that the staff of that body is as diverse as the nation itself,” said the former mayor of Ithaca, New York.

He added, “Making sure that all groups are represented in Congress is a way to [ensure] that good decisions are made for the entire country.”

According to its official website, ODI was created in March 2020 to create a workforce within the U.S. House of Representatives “reflective of the American people.”  

Over the course of four years, the office provided five functions: candidate services, member services, research and data analytics, programming, and professional development. All were focused on ensuring the office met its goal of putting “the people in the people’s house.”

On March 22, Congress passed a $1.2 trillion funding bill that included a provision to shut down the office, which went into effect on Monday.

Dr. Sesha Joi Moon, director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, told theGrio that it has been “an honor to help ensure that the United States Congress embodied a qualified and representative workforce that reflected the country’s vast tapestry.”

ODI is slated to be replaced by the Office of Talent Management under the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer.

Moon plans to leave her post in the coming weeks officially and said her staff members will soon begin working for the Office of Talent Management and will continue to “put the people in the people’s house.”

Moon told theGrio that her team consisted “of some of the best and brightest from both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill.”

Myrick of People For the American Way said he hopes ODI and other offices disbanded nationwide are restored by 2025.

“If we’re not able to restore them, then I fear Congress will keep working in the dark,” he cautioned.

Moore of the ACLU said the House and its staff “should include all of us, granting everyone a voice and the power to shape what happens to the American people.”

She criticized far-right politicians who continue to ensure that “doors are kept closed to candidates who can do the job and improve our ability to serve everyone.”

On Monday, the Congressional Black Associates, the Congressional Asian Pacific American Staff Association, the Congressional Hispanic Staff Association, and the Senate Black Legislative Staff Caucus released a joint statement citing that they are “disheartened” by the news.

“The House Office of Diversity and Inclusion has played a pivotal role in increasing diversity in Congress and advancing our respective organizations’ membership throughout its existence,” the statement read.

“Eradicating efforts that promote diversity and inclusion could reduce opportunities for staffers of color, creating further barriers to representation in a body that already does not adequately reflect the diversity of the country it represents.”

Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn the use of race-conscious affirmative action in college admissions, Republican lawmakers have introduced and passed national and local legislation to end diversity programs on college campuses and in the workplace.

Most recently, U.S. Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C., introduced “The EDUCATE Act,” which would strip federal funding from medical schools that offer DEI programs, teach about white supremacy, and offer scholarships for certain racial groups.

U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., recently told theGrio that the bill is “the same bigoted moves and type of legislation we’ve seen in the past few years.”

Moore of the ACLU said the statute would exacerbate the issue of “underrepresentation in the medical profession.”

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, 5.7% of U.S. doctors are Black, 6.9% are Hispanic, 20.9% are Asian, and 63.9% are white.

Moore told theGrio that legislation like the one Rep. Murphy introduced not only negatively impacts future doctors but also harms patients, who tend to benefit from having doctors who come from different ethnic and racial backgrounds.  

In another effort to crack down on diversity programs, the University of Florida shut down its DEI office earlier this month, eliminating several positions to comply with a GOP-led law backed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, which defunded DEI programs at state universities and colleges.

In a statement obtained by theGrio, the Congressional Black Caucus Chairman, Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., said the university’s decision “is far out of step with the standards and values expected of a public institution of higher education.”

The Nevada lawmaker said he and members of the CBC will not “be silent [at] this moment.” He vowed, “They’re coming after the tools of opportunity, and we’re working to defend it.”

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