New York Tells Trump Administration: We’re Not Dropping DEI Programs
New York state officials are pushing back hard against the Trump administration’s latest move to shut down diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in public schools. Despite threats to cut off federal funding, NY isn’t budging.
In a letter sent Friday, Daniel Morton-Bentley who’s with the state’s Education Department basically told the feds, “You don’t have the power to make us do this.” He pointed out that neither federal nor state laws ban DEI principles.
The Trump administration recently gave K-12 schools across the country a 10-day deadline to confirm they’re not using DEI in ways that could be considered discriminatory otherwise, they risk losing federal money. A big chunk of that funding goes to Title I schools, which serve low-income communities.
Craig Trainor from the U.S. Education Department said financial support is a “privilege, not a right” and accused schools of using DEI programs unfairly claiming they help some groups at the expense of others.
New York’s response? They’ve already confirmed they follow civil rights laws, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and don’t see the need to jump through more hoops. Morton-Bentley also called out the administration’s legal logic, saying it doesn’t hold up.
He even noted that the stance is a huge flip from what Trump’s team said back in 2020. At the time, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos actually praised diversity as essential to strong performance.
Critics are also pointing out a major contradiction: Trump promised to give schools and states more control over education, but now his administration is threatening to yank funding unless they follow his rules.
This isn’t the first time New York has refused to play ball. The state also rejected a federal demand to kill a congestion pricing plan meant to reduce traffic in Manhattan and fund public transit.
