It’s been a tumultuous few weeks in the USA, with Donald Trump’s inauguration taking place and his monumental retaking of office. What cemented in his transition to power was a flourish of controversial and contentious executive orders being implemented throughout the country. One such example: the removal of federal diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) policies.
Many of these DEI initiatives were implemented in 2020, following the wake of George Floyd’s death and a nationwide commitment to mitigating the effects of institutionalised racism throughout America. However, since Trump’s return to the White House, a plethora of big tech firms have followed precedent, regressed, and removed these policies.
Firms such as Meta and Amazon have led the field in this regard, dropping initiatives and policies that improve the representation and advocacy of marginalised groups and people throughout society. While these big tech firms state they are maintaining a commitment to looking for diverse staff, they will henceforth be putting an end to the current procedure of making selections from a pool of multifaceted and diverse candidates.
Following Trump’s election, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos wasted no time in implementing change. Stating they are rolling back on “outdated initiatives” Bezos swiftly eradicated DEI policies as early as December 2024, notifying employees by memo about this change in company policy. Amazon and Meta are not federal companies, and therefore are not subject to presidential policies or orders, like federal organisations are. So while undoubtedly feeling pressure from the White House, the inner circle of American tech and government, including Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, are seemingly more than happy to drop any form of representative protection for minority groups and people.
But tech firms aren’t the only ones that are removing such policy in their recruitment and operating process. Finance companies are swiftly following suit, with trailblazers Deloitte and Goldman Sachs bowing to executive pressure and equally dropping DEI initiatives one by one.
This move follows a wave of anti-diversity and representation measures throughout North America. In June 2023, affirmative action for college decisions was also rolled back and in ruling on Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas stated affirmative action was unconstitutional and signified a turn away from judicial protection measures. Donald Trump’s ready ascension to power and swiftly implemented executive orders has already made its mark on America. With more contentious policy to come and recruitment change, we are seeing his own version and parody of “Make America Great Again” come to life in all aspects, from college admissions to recruitment and more.