A bill banning DEI in Ohio public colleges is opposed by students, teachers
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Students, teachers and civil rights groups are calling on Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine to veto legislation that would ban diversity, equity and inclusion programs and make other sweeping changes to public colleges and universities in the state.
The bill arrived on DeWine's desk Wednesday, according to a spokesperson, giving him 10 days excepting Sundays to either sign it, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature.
The American Historical Association, American Civil Liberties Union, K-12 unions and Democrats all are calling on the Republican governor to reject Senate Bill 1, which also would prohibit faculty strikes and limit classroom discussion. DeWine has said that he plans to sign the measure, which sparked hourslong hearings and protests attended by hundreds of demonstrators.
The measure was a priority of the GOP-supermajority Legislature, where an amended Senate-passed version cleared the Ohio House 59-34 last week and a final version cleared the Ohio Senate 20-11 on Wednesday.
Besides banning DEI programs and rescinding certain collective bargaining and tenure protections for faculty, the bill also would make schools promise not to influence student views on 'controversial' topics, require every Ohio college student to take a three-hour civics education course and impose dozens of other programmatic and administrative changes. Schools that violated its provisions would risk losing their state funding.
The bill's sponsor, state Sen. Jerry Cirino, a Cleveland-area Republican, has said the bill aims to protect 'intellectual diversity,' not dampen it. During Senate debate on the bill in February, Cirino called DEI a 'debacle' that 'has morphed into institutional discrimination' against conservative perspectives.
Republican President Donald Trump has made the same argument as he has taken aim at DEI programs at the federal level, to the relief and delight of many conservatives.
A group of federal employees targeted for dismissal because of their involvement in such activities has filed a class-action complaint against the administration. And on Thursday, a federal judge temporarily blocked another of the president's DEI-related executive orders affecting federal contractors and grant recipients.
ACLU of Ohio Policy Director Jocelyn Rosnick said the bill "sends a clear, harmful message to students that their unique backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives are not welcome in Ohio."
'Further, the exceedingly vague and contradictory language regarding the banning of so-called 'controversial beliefs or policies' creates a slippery slope for faculty and administration,' she said in a statement. 'This could lead to faculty avoiding any such topics in classrooms for fear of retaliation.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
E&E News
31 minutes ago
- E&E News
New megabill text revives land sales, axes IRA funding
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee's portion of Republicans' party-line bill proposes to sell off certain public lands and repeal billions of dollars for energy programs in Democrats' 2022 climate law. The committee's proposal, unveiled Wednesday evening, contains many of the provisions in the House-passed H.R. 1, the 'One Big, Beautiful Bill Act' — including ones that would target the Department of Energy's Loan Programs Office or charge a one-time fee to speed up permitting for some natural gas projects. But there are some significant differences. Most notable is a new section favored by Chair Mike Lee (R-Utah) to revive the sale of public lands, reigniting a firestorm of opposition from advocates. The provision goes further than an abandoned proposal in the House, encompassing Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service lands across 11 Western states. Advertisement ENR's text comes as the Senate is racing to tweak and quickly vote on tax, energy and national security legislation after the House approved its version last month. Republicans are working through the reconciliation process, which will allow them to skirt the Senate filibuster and pass the budget-focused bill with simple majorities.
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Senate Democrats demand probe of Ed Martin's pledge to 'shame' Trump's opponents, other actions at DOJ
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee are pushing for an investigation into top Justice Department official Ed Martin over his stated plans to "shame" political opponents of President Donald Trump who he's unable to charge criminally, as well as a host of other politically charged matters Martin has publicly pledged to pursue in his new position. "I write to express my grave concern about Ed Martin's stated intention to abuse his new roles as lead of the so-called 'Weaponization Working Group' you constituted at the Department of Justice (DOJ) and as DOJ's Pardon Attorney," Sen. Dick Durbin, the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, said in a letter transmitted to the Justice Department, which was first obtained by ABC News. "Following his disgraceful tenure as Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Mr. Martin apparently plans to continue his misconduct in his new roles at DOJ." The DOJ did not immediately respond to an ABC News request for comment on the letter. MORE: Ed Martin, Trump's DOJ pardon attorney, says he'll review Biden's outgoing pardons Martin's controversial tenure as the interim U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., in the opening months of Trump's presidency thrust the office into turmoil and led several Senate Republicans to state publicly they wouldn't support his permanent confirmation in the role. But once the White House announced they were pulling Martin's nomination, Trump said Martin would instead be appointed to several top positions working out of DOJ's main headquarters -- serving as an associate deputy attorney general, the U.S. pardon attorney and director of the so-called "Weaponization Working Group." Martin celebrated the news on his X account, posting 'Eagle Unleashed,' and in various interviews celebrated what he described as a mandate from Trump directly to target the alleged 'weaponization' of the department under the Biden administration. 'It's classic Donald Trump, right? That somebody tries to block him and block his pick, and he decides to double down,' Martin told Breitbart News last month. 'This is probably the greatest job I could ever envision.' MORE: Trump US attorney nominee distances himself from antisemitic Jan. 6 rioter he once praised In a news conference announcing his departure from the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office, Martin confirmed he planned to launch a probe of last-minute pardons issued by former President Joe Biden just before he left office -- and suggested that officials he's unable to charge would instead be publicly "shamed." "There are some really bad actors, some people that did some really bad things to the American people," Martin said. "And if they can be charged, we'll charge them. But if they can't be charged, we will name them ... And in a culture that respects shame, they should be people that are shamed. And that's a fact. That's the way things work. And so that's how I believe the job operates." The approach would directly conflict with longstanding DOJ policy that prohibits prosecutors from naming or disparaging individuals who they don't intend to charge criminally. When asked about that policy by ABC News during the news conference, Martin said he would "have to look at what the provision you're referring to, to see -- we want to square ourselves with doing the things correctly." The letter from Senate Democrats said Martin's statements "are a brazen admission that Mr. Martin plans to systematically violate the Justice Manual's prohibition on extrajudicial statements by shaming uncharged parties for nakedly partisan reasons. Weaponizing DOJ in this manner will further undermine the public's trust in the department in irreparable ways." MORE: Bondi, as new AG, launches 'Weaponization Working Group' to review officials who investigated Trump In his early days as pardon attorney, Martin said he advised the president in his pardon of former Virginia county sheriff Scott Jenkins, who had been sentenced to ten years in prison for a federal bribery conviction. "No MAGA left behind," Martin posted on X in response to the pardon. Durbin's letter further cited reports Martin has "personally advocated" fast-tracking pardons for members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers who were convicted of seditious conspiracy stemming from their roles leading up to the attack on the Capitol, after President Trump initially opted to commute their sentences in his sweeping clemency action for the nearly 1600 individuals charged in connection with Jan. 6. Durbin's letter requests Bondi provide a host of records related to Martin's appointment and early days as head of the Weaponization Working Group and Pardon Attorney's Office. It's unclear whether DOJ will ultimately respond to Durbin's demands given Democrats' minority position on the committee. Senate Democrats demand probe of Ed Martin's pledge to 'shame' Trump's opponents, other actions at DOJ originally appeared on
E&E News
31 minutes ago
- E&E News
Hill Republicans applaud climate rule rollback
Republican lawmakers welcomed the Trump administration's Wednesday proposal to roll back limits on power plant emissions. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin unveiled a plan to wipe out power plant pollution limits and carbon storage requirements that were instituted under former President Joe Biden. The proposal would leave the power sector without a federal mandate to address fossil fuel emissions. Republicans on Capitol Hill were quick to welcome EPA's actions. They downplayed potential climate impacts, instead pointing to the need to bolster fuel production to power artificial intelligence and lower energy prices. Advertisement 'These regulations promulgated during the Biden-Harris administration threaten American businesses and workers without making a meaningful difference toward addressing pollution,' said Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), chair of the House's Energy and Commerce Committee, at EPA's Wednesday rollout event.
