President Biden revokes Trump’s agency diversity training ban

The ad industry reacts to the reversal of Trump’s much-maligned executive order which threatened to punish agencies that offered diversity training that he deemed “divisive.”

In one of his first actions in the Oval Office, president Joe Biden has revoked a Trump administration executive order (EO) forbidding agency diversity training that it considered “divisive.” In fact, EO 13950, as it had been known, has been removed entirely from the White House website.

In the aftermath of the death of George Floyd, the ad industry went to great lengths to improve diversity hiring practices and to combat inherent racism. President Trump sent shockwaves throughout the industry, in September, when he threatened to cancel government contracts if agencies discussed unconscious bias, white privilege and other elements of “scapegoating.” Under EO 13950, agencies in violation could also be declared ineligible for future government contracts. A hotline was set up for employees to blow the whistle on training programs that did not comply.

Trump’s executive order “created a chilling effect on agency diversity training programs and prompted uncertainty as to what practices were legal,” says Alison Pepper, executive vice-president, government relations at the 4A’s.

“As a result, some agencies put their existing or planned training programs on hold until it was known if the EO would withstand judicial scrutiny, or if it would be overturned by a new administration. President Biden’s revocation of EO 13950, which included restrictions on diversity training for federal contractors, is great news for agencies as federal contracting is a significant source of their business.”

Read more at The Drum here.