Trump signs two orders to dismantle gender and racial equity policies

President Trump on Monday ordered his administration to gut policies instituted under the Biden administration to prevent gender discrimination and protect transgender Americans, and to dismantle federal programs that promote diversity, equity and inclusion.

Mr. Trump’s actions, part of a series of orders he signed on his first day in office, assert that the government will now defend women against “ideological gender extremism” by rolling back “the efforts to eradicate the biological reality of sex.” They also call for an end to DEI programs and “an end to all discriminatory programs” in government, including in federal employment practices.

The decrees included a mix of administrative measures, such as changing forms of government to include only two sexes, as well as statements rejecting the validity of gender identity entirely. A gender identity other than that assigned at birth, according to one order, “reflects an entirely internal and subjective sense of self” and “does not provide a meaningful basis for identification.”

These actions also ended a range of programs and practices aimed at reversing decades of systemic inequities and discriminatory practices that have disproportionately affected Black and other underserved communities.

Under these orders, the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Performance and Personnel Management will coordinate to change hiring practices, terminate equity-focused programs and grants, and terminate to designated “chief diversity officer” positions under the Biden administration.

The orders fulfill Mr. Trump’s promise to stamp out what his allies see as “wokeness” in the federal government, a term conservatives use to describe racial justice and civil rights advocacy. They are part of an effort he undertook during his first term to roll back policies favoring affirmative action and transgender rights.