The
Department
of
Education’s
recent
“Dear
Colleague”
letter
threatened
all
schools
that
fail
to
whitewash
their
curricula
with
having
federal
funding
snatched
from
them.
And
while
it’s
nice
to
see
schools
take
stands
for
diversity,
being
on
the
right
side
of
history
usually
doesn’t
pay
the
bills
quite
like
falling
in
line.
Law
schools
have
already
begun
scrubbing
mentions
of
diversity,
equity
and
inclusion
(DEI)
from
their
websites
to
stay
in
the
federal
funding
running.
Bloomberg
Law
has
coverage:
Law
schools
including
Cornell
Law
School,
Vanderbilt
Law
School,
and
the
University
of
Virginia
School
of
Law
have
axed
the
word
“diversity”
from
their
community-focused
webpages.
The
Antonin
Scalia
Law
School
took
down
its
diversity
page
entirely.
…
Schools
are
facing
a
Feb.
28
deadline
to
ensure
their
DEI
policies,
initiatives
and
programs
do
not
violate
federal
law
or
risk
their
federal
funding,
according
to
a
Feb.
14
letter
from
Craig
Trainor,
the
acting
assistant
secretary
for
Civil
Rights
at
the
Education
Department.
Now
that
is
a
photo-finish
deadline
—
it’s
the
classy
way
of
saying
“get
this
diversity
shit
wrapped
up
before
Black
History
Month
ends.”
We
will
see
varied
approaches
to
the
government’s
DEI
ban
over
time.
It
may
live
on
under
different
names;
for
example,
what
was
once
Vanderbilt’s
“Office
of
Diversity,
Equity
and
Community”
is
now
their
“Office
of
Culture
and
Community.”
Is
culture
their
tongue-in-cheek
nod
to
diversity
and
equity,
or
will
the
modus
operandi
change
with
the
name?
If
the
former,
good
luck
with
getting
grants.
If
there
is
an
actual
change,
how
will
Vandy’s
culture
and
community
change
over
time?
If
it
continues
to
look
how
it
does,
will
they
risk
the
proxy
suits
the
DOE
was
teasing?
Time
will
tell.
Law
Schools
Are
Dropping
‘Diversity’
From
Their
DEI
Branding
[Bloomberg
Law]
Earlier:
The
Department
Of
Education
Finally
Dropped
The
‘No
DEI
By
Proxy’
Shoe
We
Were
All
Waiting
For
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
cannot
swim, a
published
author
on
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected] and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.