Federal Judge Halts Portions of Trump’s Executive Orders Restricting DEI Programs – One America News Network
OAN Staff Abril Elfi
10:20 AM – Saturday, February 22, 2025
A federal judge has placed a temporary halt on certain aspects of President Donald Trump’s executive orders regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
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On Friday, U.S. District Judge Adam B. Abelson, appointed by former President Biden, issued a preliminary injunction against parts of Trump’s orders designed to cut government funding for DEI initiatives and to annul contracts deemed supportive of DEI.
Judge Abelson determined that some elements of the executive orders are likely infringing upon the Constitution and free speech rights.
“The harm arises from the issuance of it as a public, vague, threatening executive order,” Abelson remarked during a hearing this week, noting it could deter businesses from openly endorsing DEI while working with the government.
This ruling follows a lawsuit filed by the city of Baltimore, the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, the American Association of University Professors, and Restaurant Opportunities Centers United against the Trump administration, arguing that these executive orders represent presidential overreach and violate free speech rights.
“Ordinary citizens bear the brunt,” stated the attorneys for the plaintiffs in their complaint. “Plaintiffs and their members receive federal funds to support educators, academics, students, workers, and communities across the country. As federal agencies make arbitrary determinations about whether grants are ‘equity-related,’ Plaintiffs are left in limbo.”
They further claimed that Trump’s actions encroach upon Congress’s powers to advocate for his personal beliefs.
“But the President simply does not wield that power,” they outlined in the complaint. “And contrary to his suggestions otherwise, his power is not limitless.”
On his first day in office, Trump initiated an executive order mandating federal agencies to eliminate any “equity-related” grants or contracts. A subsequent order compelled federal contractors to certify that they do not support DEI.
During a hearing Wednesday, the Trump administration argued that the president was simply prohibiting DEI initiatives that infringe upon federal civil rights laws.
“What we are witnessing is an overcorrection and pullback on DEI statements,” attorney Aleshadye Getachew said in the hearing.
A second federal complaint was lodged on Wednesday in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, directed at Trump’s DEI executive orders. The NAACP Legal Defense Fund and Lambda Legal filed this latest suit on behalf of nonprofit advocacy organizations.
The new lawsuit challenges Trump’s executive orders titled, “Ending Radical and Wasteful DEI Programs and Preferencing,” “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” and “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.”
White House spokesperson Harrison Fields stated to the New York Times that both lawsuits are “nothing more than an extension of the left’s resistance,” asserting that the administration is “prepared to confront them in court.”
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