CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta—that includes platforms Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram—is ditching major DEI programs effective January 10, Axios reports. In a memo to employees, the new policy is to impact hiring, training and supplier sourcing practices. The company is ending its equity and inclusion training programs and totally disbanding a team that was focused on DEI.
The internal memo from Meta acknowledged that “the legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing”, while pointing to recent supreme court decisions on DEI policies.
Meta has also overhauled its content moderation policies remove free speech restrictions which pro-LGBTQ magazine The Advocate says will “permits slurs and dehumanizing rhetoric” towards LGBTQ people. However, the main issue is regarding the “TQ” community by allowing posts classifying this group as “mentally ill.”
What unifies “LGB” is sexuality, whereas “TQ” is an identity, exclusive of sexuality. There is a growing movement within the gay community to ditch the “TQ” as support for LGBTQ is diminishing worldwide, polls show.
The New York Times reports that Meta has now instructed facilities managers to remove tampons from the men’s restrooms, supplies that the company had previously provided for “nonbinary and transgender employees who use the men’s room.”
Meta’s decision comes days after it announced that it will no longer provide fact-checking moderation on its platforms and that UFC president and CEO Dana White, a Trump ally, was added to the company’s board.
As the Trump Administration is set to take over on January 20, the President-elect has vowed to issue sweeping anti-DEI executive orders to eliminate programs that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion which he has said is divisive and has its origins in Anti-American Marxist movements.
The incoming Trump Administration has hinted at strict enforcement action against organizations that engage in “racial classifications and quotas” or “DEI trainings that promote critical race theory.” There has also been talk about removing disparate impact” liability that has prioritize inclusion over merit.
Trump’s pick to lead the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division – conservative San Francisco attorney Harmeet Dhillon – is expected to use her authority to reverse many of the Biden administration’s DEI initiatives. Also, Pam Bondi, the former Florida attorney general, who was chosen by Trump to serve as the next U.S. attorney general is expected to take a similar stance.
Author: Mario Lotmore
