January 1, Federal Judge Halts Trump Push To End DEI

Wyatt’s Take

• A Maryland judge stopped Trump’s move to cut DEI programs in schools.
• The Department of Education had threatened to remove funding from places refusing to end race-based policies.
• This decision means colleges can keep their DEI efforts—for now.

A federal judge in Maryland has permanently blocked two Trump-era memos that sought to end Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs at schools and universities.

This comes after the Department of Education told federally funded schools to scrap DEI policies or risk losing federal money.

The warning, sent by the Office for Civil Rights, said DEI programs amount to racial bias, which violates federal law.

Schools were told to shut down DEI offices, stop race-based hiring and admissions, cut ties with outside DEI groups, and end segregated activities marketed as inclusion.

If schools didn’t comply, they faced losing all federal funding.

Judge Stephanie Gallagher ruled the Department of Education broke the law by making these threats.

Her order followed a lawsuit by the American Federation of Teachers and the American Sociological Association, who challenged the memos.

The memos had ordered a full stop to what the Trump administration called “race-based decision-making.”

The judge’s decision means schools won’t be forced to abandon these practices yet.

Read the full story here.

Wyatt Matters

This ruling shows just how far some in power will go to keep divisive politics in our schools. Regular Americans deserve fair treatment for their kids, with no favoritism or handouts based on skin color. It’s one more reason to keep a close eye on who’s making the rules over our local schools and communities.