Haley Bull of Scripps News reported yesterday that Trump sent out an order to all 50 states warning that the federal government would cut off funding to any school that teaches about “diversity, equity or inclusion.”
She wrote:
The Department of Education is warning state education agencies they may lose federal funding if they do not remove DEI policies and programs to comply with the department’s interpretation of federal law.
A letter from the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights was sent to the departments of education in all 50 states, according to the Department of Government Efficiency.
“Institutions that fail to comply with federal civil rights law may, consistent with applicable law, face potential loss of federal funding,” acting assistant secretary for civil rights Craig Trainor writes in the letter. The message warns that “the department will vigorously enforce the law” to schools and state educational agencies receiving funding and that it will start taking measures “to assess compliance” in no more than 14 days.
The letter argues that a Supreme Court decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which found that affirmative action in the university’s admission process violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, should apply more broadly.
“The law is clear: treating students differently on the basis of race to achieve nebulous goals such as diversity, racial balancing, social justice, or equity is illegal under controlling Supreme Court precedent,” the letter states.
This letter fails to mention that since 1970, the U.S. Department of Education has been subject to a law that states clearly that no officer of the federal government may interfere with what schools teaching.
The law states: “No provision of any applicable program shall be construed to authorize any department, agency, officer, employee, of the United States to exercise any direction, supervision, or control over the curriculum, program of instruction, [or] administration…of any educational institution…or over the selection of library resources, textbooks, or other printed or published instructional materials.“
The law is P.L. 103-33, General Education Provisions Act, section 432.
These zealots are trying to turn teaching about civil rights, about Black history, and about LGBT people into a criminal act.
They are wrong. Reality exists no matter what they ban and censor.
They are violating the law, and they must be stopped.
They must be sued by the ACLU, the NAACP, and every other legal organization that defends the rule of law.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
All of these threats are an affront to free speech. Trump’s gag orders are a feeble attempt to enforce ideological conformity. They reflect the bias and coercive practice of this administration in violation of The Constitution.
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A fellow Texas State Alumni just shared the following on FB.
“So this is how the current national administration kills the arts!
San Marcos, TX – Texas State’s School of Theatre, Dance, and Film – “After 22 years of celebrating Black and Latino voices in American theatre through the Black and Latino Playwrights Celebration, Texas State University’s School of Theatre, Dance & Film welcomes scripts from American playwrights as we introduce the New American Play Festival.”
Had they kept the Black and Latino Playwright Festival, Texas State would have lost all of its federal funding for the festival. While this has been called a move to make the festival a place for whites only, nowhere on the University’s website submission page for entries does it say it is for whites only. It is an unfortunate move that the university made to keep its funding. Hopefully, Black and Latino playwrights’ voices can be seen and heard in this re-named festival.
Even more regrettable is that the finalists had already been notified for the Black and Latino Playwrights Celebrations.”
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Trump has stated that the DoD Schools cannot use any book that has anything to do with DEI such Julianne Moore’s children book, “Freckleface Strawberry”.
See: NJ.com: https://apple.news/AnwyK2486SCOE86e9uPDm3w
Since he is an officer of the government I think the 1970 law applies to him also.
Of course, as we are well aware, Musk’s Puppet President breaks the law every day. So what’s new.
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Who will hold him accountable for breaking the law? Not Pam Bondi. A lawsuit is needed.
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that would be the least of the laws he is breaking. Trump/Musk is shredding the constitution without consequences.
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Surely there are school boards who will individually or collectively, perhaps even with a few tweaks in policies will say: “Bring it on!” And, superintendents who individually or collectively, after reviewing the Administrative Guidelines of policies will say: “Bring it on!”
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Trump must be channeling Mr. Bumble: “The law is a ass – a idiot.”
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Trump, the would be Mussolini, wants to dictate what can or cannot be taught in schools. It’s hideous and disgusting on an almost daily basis, the Trump-Musk White House, that is.
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We all know this is a slow moving coup, and we better start thinking of it that way. Republican legislators have to face up to the fact that they will soon be responsible for the death of democracy unless they stand up and start doing their job instead of leaving it to career civil servants who are giving up their careers in protest over the actions of the Trump/Musk presidency. Who cares if they get primaried! So they face losing their jobs as puppets of our “dear leader.” Anyone who abdicates their responsibilities and dishonors their oath of office does not belong in Congress.
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Congress is useless at this point; we need the courts to step in. If an organization, school, or state education agency “calls President Trump’s bluff” and loses funding (preferably one that doesn’t rely on too much federal funding), there will be harm caused and thus standing to file suit, where the courts should wipe this threat out based on existing law. It sounds like, at this point, it’s just empty words (which are on their face illegal in that they seem to be the federal government dictating curriculum choices) or a threat to withhold funding (the use of the word “may” is telling).
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