140+ Civil Rights, Economic Justice, and Education Organizations Call on President Biden to Promote Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mattie Goldman, [email protected]

DEIA is “vital to economic growth – while underscoring key American values of equal opportunity, freedom, and fairness”

WASHINGTON — The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, along with 142 civil rights, education, economic justice, and labor organizations, issued their broadest shared defense of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility amid broad attacks on the gains of the civil rights movement that have helped increase equal opportunity and fairness. 

In a letter sent to President Biden, the signers asked the administration to promote, protect, and strengthen programs that achieve diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) in our economy and called on employers and government officials to double down on creating opportunities for all. The letter comes in response to ongoing attacks on DEIA programs and as we celebrate Juneteenth and look ahead to the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which proclaimed discrimination unlawful in employment across federally funded programs like education and health care institutions. This legislation helped promote longer life expectancy, higher wages, more jobs, and educational opportunities for Black people and for all.

The groups state: “Ongoing discrimination in our economy, whether demonstrated through responses to national polls, litigation brought by the federal government, or macro-economic analysis demands action by all actors and sectors. America is at its best when we break down barriers to ensure all of us — no matter what we look like or where we come from — can succeed. We all benefit when Black, white, Latino, Asian American and Pacific Islander, Middle Eastern, and Indigenous people are empowered to bring their skills and talents to good jobs where they are valued and treated with respect and dignity.” 

The letter makes clear that beyond helping employers fulfill their legal obligations to create workplaces free from discrimination, DEIA programs can also make businesses more competitive and profitable. When employers remove unfair barriers, seek out applicants from all racial and ethnic backgrounds, and create a workplace culture that fosters respect, workers, businesses, and the nation as a whole can thrive. 

President Biden has signed three executive orders that speak to these same priorities, including on day one of his presidency, on January 20, 2021. He signed additional orders on June 25, 2021 and February 16, 2023. The groups look forward to continued work with the administration to expand on these efforts. 

Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the delivery of this letter to the Biden administration: 

“As we commemorate the Juneteenth holiday, we are reminded that we have much more work to do to achieve the promise of an opportunity-rich and fair America. This country fought a civil war to end chattel slavery, and it took another hundred years of fighting to win laws to implement the promise of equal opportunity. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped Black people live longer lives and increase wages, jobs, entrepreneurship, and educational achievement. 

“Despite the progress, we still have life expectancy gaps. We shouldn’t. We see attacks on teaching history and creating socially cohesive and fair places of work. We shouldn’t. We celebrate small businesses and their outsized contribution to the nation’s gross domestic product and job creation, but businesses started by Black people, Latinos, Native Americans, and immigrants of color don’t get fair opportunities for capital investment. That’s wrong. 

“We are here to say that we won’t go backwards, and we have work to do to get to the promised land of prosperity for all. We speak with the voice of the overwhelming majority of people in America when we say that our democracy and our economy depend on creating equal opportunities for all of us and that we can lift all boats when we stop the fear mongers from trying to drive us apart. We should get to express who we are, learn each other’s histories, and read books about our different identities and experiences, including if we are LGBTQ+. We should be able to learn in diverse schools. Without these protections, we lose what is central to our democracy. 

“Decades of work in coalition has taught us that battles are won together. As extremists seek to weaponize our nation’s civil rights laws and turn the tools of racial progress on their heads, employers and the federal government must recognize that efforts to roll back DEIA are thinly veiled attacks on our civil rights protections in their entirety, and act to protect the progress we’ve made.” 

Read the full text of the letter here.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 240 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.

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