Trump holds Black History Month event as some agencies skip recognition after anti-DEI order
President Donald Trump arrives to speak at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) Institute summit in Miami Beach, Fla., Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Credit: AP/Rebecca Blackwell
President Donald Trump marked Black History Month at the White House on Thursday, preserving a tradition by holding a reception at the same time that his executive order ending the federal government's diversity, equity and inclusion programs has disrupted its observance elsewhere.
The ceremony comes as Trump has called DEI programs “discrimination” and pushed to eradicate diversity programs from the government, directed that DEI workers eventually be laid off and exerted similar pressure on the private sector to shift to an exclusive focus on merit.
The sweeping effort has sown discord and confusion across federal agencies, which have variously interpreted the order to limit how they can acknowledge race in history and culture or report demographic data on race and gender.
Out East with Doug Geed: Wine harvests, a fish market, baked treats and poinsettias NewsdayTV's Doug Geed visits two wineries and a fish market, and then it's time for holiday cheer, with a visit to a bakery and poinsettia greenhouses.
