Diversity Programs Could Mean Defunding, New Attorney General Memorandum Warns

Federal law has long required recipients of federal funds to comply with anti-discrimination laws. Over the last decade, initiatives under the label Diversity, Equity and Inclusion ("DEI") became a widespread vehicle for addressing alleged past and present discrimination at both public and private institutions. Now, the US Department of Justice has issued sweeping guidance characterizing these programs as unlawful race- and sex-based discrimination that could lead to loss of federal funds.

• Practices that grant preferential treatment based on protected characteristics, such as race, color, national origin, sex or religion;
• Practices that use facially neutral proxies for protected characteristics;