North Carolina Ends DEI in Public Universities and State Government

Today, North Carolina became the latest state to strike a blow against discriminatory “diversity, equity, and inclusion” programs (DEI) in public schools and state government when lawmakers overrode the governor’s veto on three bills that decisively prohibit DEI initiatives that promote discrimination, waste taxpayer money, and distort education.

Each of the bills—House Bill 171, Senate Bill 227, and Senate Bill 558—contains provisions modeled after Goldwater Institute model policies intended to end DEI initiatives, offices, and mandatory coursework in government and higher education.

HB 171, championed by Reps. Benden Jones, Neal Jackson, Jarrod Lowery, and Blair Eddins, prohibits DEI practices, policies and initiatives in state government. SB 227 and SB 558, championed by Sens. Phil Berger, Michael Lee, Brad Overcash, and Kevin Corbin, end DEI practices, initiatives and mandatory coursework in K-12 education and higher education, respectively.

DEI cloaks its radical and discriminatory aims with feel-good buzzwords. The ideology behind DEI divides American society into “oppressors” and “oppressed”—with both groups defined by identity categories such as race, ethnicity, and sex.

Our society, according to DEI gurus, is a rigged system in which the “oppressors” use law, culture, and institutions to subjugate the “oppressed.” The only way to fix this fundamentally unjust system is to discriminate against those deemed “oppressors.” The Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the law, according to DEI advocates, must be discarded to pursue so-called “equity.” Such an agenda should have no place in public higher education and state government.

One of North Carolina’s bills, modeled on the Goldwater Institute’s Freedom from Indoctrination Act, eliminates DEI course mandates in public universities. Throughout the country, public universities force students to spend time and tuition dollars on DEI courses just to obtain a degree. These required DEI courses lecture students on the so-called “oppression” that allegedly pervades American society. Students are encouraged, if not compelled, to endorse this radical political agenda that rejects the Constitution and fundamental American principles.

North Carolina’s legislation helps to restore public universities to their core purpose of education, not indoctrination.

North Carolina is joining numerous other states in decisively rejecting the DEI agenda. The Goldwater Institute applauds the North Carolina General Assembly for overriding the governor’s vetoes on this important legislation. In the wake of this landmark victory against this discriminatory ideology, Goldwater will continue to advance policies that will defeat divisive DEI practices for good.