President Trump signed an executive order Tuesday barring federal funds from any contractors who conduct critical-race theory diversity training, saying it promotes a “destructive ideology.”
Expanding on action the White House took earlier this month with federal agencies, the president said the administration won’t allow “race or sex stereotyping or scapegoating in the federal workforce” and won’t permit contractors “to inculcate such views in their employees.”
“Such ideas may be fashionable in the academy, but they have no place in programs and activities supported by federal taxpayer dollars,” the president said. “Research also suggests that blame-focused diversity training reinforces biases and decreases opportunities for minorities.”
Critical-race theory and “White privilege” diversity training had been on the rise in the administration before the White House moved this month to stop it. Mr. Trump’s order cites examples such as training materials from Argonne National Laboratories that stated racism “is interwoven into every fabric of America” and described statements like “color blindness” and the “meritocracy” as “actions of bias.”
Materials from Sandia National Laboratories for non-minority males stated that an emphasis on “rationality over emotionality” was a characteristic of “white male[s],” and asked those present to “acknowledge” their “privilege” to each other, Mr. Trump said.
“This destructive ideology is grounded in misrepresentations of our country’s history and its role in the world,” he said. “This ideology is rooted in the pernicious and false belief that America is an irredeemably racist and sexist country; that some people, simply on account of their race or sex, are oppressors; and that racial and sexual identities are more important than our common status as human beings and Americans.”
Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought said requiring or pressuring employees to attend training sessions “where they are told they are inherently racist is un-American.”
“President Trump’s Executive Order builds off his recent directive to halt agencies from using Critical Race Theory in training sessions to ensure federal contractors are not discriminated against,” Mr. Vought said.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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