Meta, Amazon nix variety, pre-Trump inclusion programs | Donald Trump news

Conservative groups have denounced the programs and threatened to sue the companies over them.

Facebook owner Meta Platforms and Amazon are suspending diversity programs ahead of Republican Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency amid growing conservative opposition to such initiatives.

Some of the largest U.S. businesses are scaling back diversity initiatives years after pushing for more inclusive policies following the protests that followed the police killings of George Floyd and others. Black Americans in 2020.

Meta is ending its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, including programs to recruit, train and select suppliers, it said in an internal memo to employees on Friday, the latest in a series of moves hailed by conservatives.

There’s Meta in less than two weeks Abolished the US fact-checking programpromoted Joel Kaplan, a prominent Republican, to chief global affairs officer and tapped Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO and close friend of Trump Dana White to the board.

In a December memo to employees seen by Reuters on Friday, Amazon said it was “eliminating outdated programs and materials” related to representation and inclusion, aiming to complete the process by the end of 2024.

‘Signal of Change’

Conservative groups have denounced the programs and threatened to sue the companies over them. stopped affirmative action in university admissions decisions.

Just this week, Elon Musk and other Trump allies accused DEI programs of hindering the response to the raging wildfires in Los Angeles without any evidence.

“The legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing,” Janelle Gale, Meta’s vice president of human resources, said in a memo seen by Reuters and first reported by Axios.

Gale cited recent Supreme Court decisions that “signal a shift” in how US courts will approach DEI programs in the future.

“The term ‘DEI’ has also been charged because it is understood by some as a practice that favors some groups over others,” he said.

In practice, this means that Meta will no longer have a team focused on diversity and inclusion, and the company will instead “focus on how to implement fair and consistent practices that reduce bias for everyone, regardless of your background,” the company says.

The company will also end its “diverse slate approach” to hiring, a strategy that includes candidates from a diverse group of people to be considered for each open position.

One employee called Gale’s comment on the memo “sad to read.”

Other companies that have recently completed DEI programs include McDonald’s, automaker Ford, Walmart and farm equipment maker John Deere.