A battle over diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is brewing in North Carolina between its GOP-majority Legislature and the Democratic governor.
The battle began in June when the GOP-led Legislature passed three bills that “would restrict diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in public schools, universities, and state government,” according to NC Newsline.
“Senate Bill 227 targets K-12 education, while Senate Bill 558 focuses on public colleges and universities,” Newsline noted. “The bills would prohibit what sponsors describe as ‘divisive concepts’ from being taught in the classroom.”
Last up is House Bill 171, “which would ban state agencies from promoting, supporting, funding, implementing, or maintaining workplace DEI, including in hirings, dedicated staff positions, and offering or requiring DEI training.”
Proud to announce that the NC House has concurred with the Senate on my bill, HB 171, to eliminate DEI programs in state agencies.
HB 171 now heads to the Governor’s desk — let’s make sure he hears from us. Tell Governor Stein: end taxpayer-funded DEI in North Carolina! #ncpol pic.twitter.com/oLRGW5mAGd
— Rep. Brenden Jones (@BrendenJonesNC) June 26, 2025
HB 171 would reportedly subject violators to a fine of up to $5,000, in addition to potential civil litigation.
State Sen. Danny Brit described the bill as ensuring “everyone should be treated equally across the board,” meaning they should be judged by merit, not by frivolous, identitarian markers.
Of course, the modern Democratic Party takes the opposite view.
State Sen. Val Applewhite, a rabid Democrat, alleged that the bill isn’t about protecting merit.
“It’s about protecting privilege,” she crowed. “It’s about fear, fear that as this nation grows more diverse… the grip on power by a shrinking few is slipping away.”
This attitude is shared by Gov. Josh Stein, another rabid Democrat who vetoed all three bills a couple of weeks later in early July.
“At a time when teachers, law enforcement, and state employees need pay raises and people need shorter lines at the DMV, the legislature failed to pass a budget and, instead, wants to distract us by stoking culture wars that further divide us,” he said in a statement.
“These mean-spirited bills would marginalize vulnerable people and also undermine the quality of public services and public education. Therefore, I am vetoing them. I stand ready to work with the legislature when it gets serious about protecting people and addressing North Carolinians’ pressing concerns,” he added.
NC’s Dem Gov. @JoshStein_ has vetoed legislation the GOP-led legislature passed targeting DEI and trans folks. Because we broke their House supermajority in November, they won’t be able to override these vetoes! We must keep building power in the state. https://t.co/mZuPkMW6yL
— Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (@DLCC) July 11, 2025
Republicans immediately began working to overturn his veto, but there was and still remains a serious problem.
“Republicans remain one vote short of the three-fifths majority needed in the state House to override Gov. Josh Stein’s vetoes,” Fox News reported Wednesday.
The good news is that Republicans reportedly hold a veto-proof majority in the state Senate and have already used that power to override Stein’s vetoes. The problem is the House still has to act.
“Some Democratic members of the North Carolina House have crossed party lines in the past on issues like immigration, but the North Carolina Black Caucus has planted itself firmly against the GOP’s anti-DEI efforts,” Fox News notes.
In a statement made on Tuesday to The News and Observer, the caucus said it “stands united to defend the freedoms, responsibilities, and opportunities that belong to every person in our state, especially those from communities that have been historically excluded or marginalized.”
In other words, the caucus intends to stand against merit and in favor of racial discrimination and essentialism — the type that says blacks and Hispanics deserve more/better opportunities than whites and Asians.
“As lawmakers who represent North Carolinians in every region of our state, we know how deeply these proposals would harm the people we serve,” the caucus continued. “We also know that these bills are not about strengthening our institutions, but part of a national campaign to divide, distract, and roll back generations of progress building toward fairness and inclusion.”
To them, so-called “fairness and inclusion” means propping up certain minorities at the expense of everybody else, e.g., affirmative action.
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Author: Vivek Saxena
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