Private-sector DEI programs land in DOJ crosshairs

Published: February 7, 2025 | by Michael Cardman, Senior Legal Editor at Brightmine

On his first day in office, President Trump issued an executive order terminating all diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and policies in the federal government.

Now, his new attorney general is planning to root out DEI in the private sector as well.

In a new memo, Attorney General Pam Bondi directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division to “investigate, eliminate, and penalize” illegal DEI and accessibility preferences, mandates, policies, programs and activities in the private sector and in educational institutions that receive federal funds.

Bondi directed DOJ staff to submit a report no later than March 1 that addresses:

• Key “sectors of concern” within the DOJ’s jurisdiction and the most “egregious and discriminatory” DEI and accessibility practitioners within those sectors.
• Proposals for criminal and civil investigations of publicly traded corporations, large nonprofits and other entities whose use of DEI or accessibility programs or principles constitutes “illegal discrimination or preferences.”

Trump has said that race- and sex-based preferences adopted under DEI and accessibility programs can violate the text and spirit of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other federal civil rights laws.

Bondi’s memo says it “does not prohibit educational, cultural, or historical observances — such as Black History Month, International Holocaust Remembrance Day, or similar events — that celebrate diversity, recognize historical contributions, and promote awareness without engaging in exclusion or discrimination.”

Many companies have scaled back or eliminated their DEI efforts in the wake of Trump’s orders. Others — most prominently, Costco and Apple — are holding the line for now.