Jan. 10 (UPI) — Citing a changing “legal and policy landscape,” social media giant Meta is ending its corporate diversity, equity and inclusion program, according to a leaked internal company memo published on Friday.
In the memo, first obtained by Axios, Meta vice president of human resources Janelle Gale tells employees the platform is ending its DEI program in the face of shifting political realities.
“The legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing,” Gale writes. “The Supreme Court of the United States has recently made decisions signaling a shift in how courts will approach DEI. It reaffirms longstanding principles that discrimination should not be tolerated or promoted on the basis of inherent characteristics.”
Also, she adds, the term “DEI” has “also become charged, in part because “it is understood by some as a practice that suggests preferential treatment of some groups over others.”
The move comes only days after Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook, Instagram and Threads are ending their third-party fact-checking program and shifting to a user-generated “Community Notes” format.
Zuckerberg pledged to work with the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump to combat what called “politically biased” fact-checkers, echoing claims long made by Trump and many other Republicans that Silicon Valley tech companies habitually censor right-wing views on their social media platforms.
Similarly, Trump and GOP candidates across the country campaigned heavily on their opposition to “woke” DEI programs in corporate and academic settings last year.
Since 2023, some 159 colleges have reduced or eliminated these programs while new legislation in states such as Texas and Florida have banned DEI programs outright.
Following a Supreme Court ruling in 2023 that race could not be considered in college admissions decisions, scholarships for students with diverse racial identities have all but disappeared, higher education leaders say.
In corporate America, meanwhile, DEI programs have also come under increasing pressure from conservative activists who claim they discriminate against white job candidates.
McDonald’s announced this week announced it is “revising” its program to emphasize “inclusion,” joining other companies such as Walmart, John Deere, Harley-Davidson in rolling back their DEI commitments, many of which were instituted following the worldwide wave of protests over the police murder of George Floyd in 2020.
In August, home improvement chain Lowe’s revealed it has ended its participation in Human Rights Campaign surveys and is placing its diversity resource groups under one umbrella.
In the Facebook company memo, Gale said the company will still look for job candidates from diverse backgrounds, but indicated Meta now believes “there are other ways to build an industry-leading workforce” rather than through an explicit DEI policy.
The social media platform’s move was quickly applauded by Republican officials.
“While this decision doesn’t undo the damage caused by their role in advancing this divisive agenda, ending DEI programs is a good first step,” Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Texas, told The Hill, while calling for the federal government to “follow suit and eliminate these programs across every agency.”