114th General Assembly: Tennessee Ends Discriminatory DEI Policies

For years, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives have masked systematic discrimination against qualified individuals based on immutable characteristics like race, religion, and national origin. These policies prioritize group identity over individual merit, creating a system where opportunities are awarded based on appearance rather than merit.

Tennessee Republicans have ended this discriminatory system. I'm proud to report that we became the first state in the nation to successfully pass comprehensive legislation dismantling DEI policies across state and local government and public universities.

Our Four-Point Strategy to End Discrimination:

1. Eliminated Race-Based College Admissions - Public and private colleges in Tennessee are now prohibited from making admissions, scholarship, or financial aid decisions based on race, color, ethnicity, or national origin. Students will be judged on their academic achievements and character, not their ancestry.

2. Ended Race-Based State Board Appointments - We eliminated discriminatory requirements for state regulatory and health-related boards, ensuring appointments are based on qualifications and merit rather than race or ethnicity.

3. Banned DEI Hiring Practices - Local governments and public universities are now prohibited from making employment decisions based on race, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability status. This includes all county, municipal, and metropolitan entities.

4. Shut Down DEI Departments - State and local governments, as well as public higher education institutions, are prohibited from maintaining offices or departments that promote discriminatory preferences to advance DEI initiatives.

Why This Historic Achievement Matters: Tennessee is proving that true equality means equal opportunity, not equal outcomes. We believe every person should be judged by their qualifications, work ethic, and character, not by characteristics they were born with and cannot change.

Real-World Impact for Tennessee:

• College-bound students know they'll be evaluated fairly based on their academic performance

• Job seekers can trust that employment decisions will be based on their skills and experience

• State board positions will go to the most qualified candidates

• Taxpayer dollars won't fund divisive departments that pit Tennesseans against each other

Tennessee's Leadership Position: While other states talk about ending discrimination, Tennessee takes action. We join states like Texas and Utah in shuttering DEI departments. Still, we've gone further than any other state by comprehensively banning DEI hiring practices across all levels of government and public education.

This is what the civil rights movement was intended to achieve: a society where people are judged by the content of their character, not the color of their skin.