Was 2024 the year DEI collapsed?

Diversity, equity and inclusion DEI policies face increased scrutiny in 2024, prompting at least a dozen major U.S. companies and hundreds of universities to back away from such commitments that were once seen as harmless.

“I think it was inevitable,” said conservative activist Robbie Starbuck. Fox News Digital About returning to DEI this year after its surge in popularity four years ago.

“In 2020, a lot of CEOs bought into this idea and the whole concept of DEI because they didn’t want to be seen as racist,” he said. “A lot of them had no idea or understanding of what it would turn into.”

DEI, which often involves prioritizing race, gender or sexuality in hiring, training and programming, has been criticized by conservatives as divisive and discriminatory. DEI advocates say these efforts address racial divisions and provide support for groups that have been historically marginalized.

5 famous companies that have moved away from “diversity, equality and inclusion” initiatives

Major companies abandoning DEI in 2024

The private sector’s move away from DEI this year comes after companies have faced increasing pressure from Starbuck and other conservatives to reconsider such policies.

American Airlines It became the latest US company to agree to abandon its diversity hiring practices this month, after facing a legal complaint from the conservative watchdog organization America First Legal.

“The airline has acknowledged that recruiting and hiring based on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) violates federal equal employment opportunity laws,” the AFL said in a statement.

Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer and private-sector employer, confirmed in November that it would also be taking steps away from DEI. These changes included removing sexist and transgender products from third-party merchants that are inappropriately marketed to children from its online marketplace and ending its participation in the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index.

In a statement to FOX Business, Walmart said She was “ready to change alongside our partners and customers who represent all of America.”

“We’ve been on a journey and know we’re not perfect, but every decision comes from a desire to foster a sense of belonging, open doors to opportunity for all of our associates, customers and suppliers and be a Walmart for everyone,” the company said.

WALMART CEO addresses rollback of DEI programs: ‘We will continue to make the best decisions we can’

At least ten other American companies – Ford, LouieAnd Boeing, Caterpillar, Harley-Davidson, Polaris, John Deere, Tractor Supply Company, Jack Daniel’s, and Molson Coors all reportedly backed away from DEI initiatives earlier in the year.

Other companies with a significant presence in the United States, e.g Nissan and Toyotahas also agreed to dissolve a number of its DEI practices by the end of 2024.

Starbuck, who has led campaigns against “woke” policies at Walmart and several other companies, believes people especially started getting confused about DEI about two years ago. But in 2024, it has become socially acceptable for people to say out loud that these policies are “toxic.”

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“This was the year that people were socially given permission, in many ways, to talk about it and admit it. And with every company that goes down, more and more people feel comfortable admitting that they have a problem with it.” Starbuck said Fox News Digital.

Universities are turning away from DEI amid increasing pressure

DEI has also been trending offshore on campuses across the United States.

According to the Records of Higher Education, which was tracking higher education”dismantling DEI,“ 215 college campuses in 32 states have made changes to their DEI policies.

Public universities in several states have closed their DEI offices after lawmakers passed or introduced legislation banning state funding for DEI.

After the Florida Board of Governors permanently blocked taxpayer funds They are used to fund DEI programs In public schools in January, the University of Florida fired all employees in DEI positions to comply with new regulations.

The Midwest’s top university has become the latest college to back away from DEI initiatives as the trend shifts national

University of Texas at Austin It also closed its DEI offices in compliance with a new state law prohibiting DEI offices at public universities. The Anti-DEI Act, signed by Governor Abbott in 2023, also prohibits universities from using diversity data in hiring and training practices.

Alabama, Iowa and Utah joined Texas and Florida in banning DEI offices on public universities this year, according to Within higher education.

Kansas and Idaho have also passed laws prohibiting public institutions from requiring diversity data in hiring or admissions decisions.

Boise State University has become one of the latest schools to close its stock positions On November 29thfollowed by the University of Michigan breaking down DEI data as part of its faculty hiring, promotion, and tenure requirements in December.

DEI still has a strong grip on most of America’s largest companies

While many major companies will step back from DEI in 2024, the majority of the country’s largest companies still maintain some form of adherence to these practices, according to Recent report From the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation.

Heritage looked at company statements, annual reports and other publicly available documents from every Fortune 500 company and found that 485 of the top 500 companies continue to maintain DEI priorities.

British car manufacturer Jaguar was one of the companies that did this significantly Doubled After facing criticism, she has been taking her brand in a new, “woke” direction with a recent rebrand.

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Starbuck knows that his fight against “woke” ideology in major American corporations is far from over.

He predicted that some companies “will do the right thing” by dissolving the DEI company, while others will try to bring it back under other names.

“We still have work to do to institutionally get rid of the wires and foundations here, because a lot of these things are deeply ingrained in our community in ways that most people don’t even understand,” he said.

“DEI is a wounded animal, so expect desperate maneuvers from the people who have been pushing it,” he continued. “But this means we are at the beginning of its death.”

Fox News’ Alec Shimel contributed to this report.