America returns to traditional values Trump vs. DEI

Major American corporations are now decisively distancing themselves from the so-called Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) program, which Donald Trump, in his first days as the 47th President of the United States, labelled as discriminatory. Notably, Trump issued an order mandating an investigation into "alleged violations of federal civil rights laws."

In this regard, it is worth noting that DEI was understood as a program (or trend) that was heavily promoted as being "essential to the success of any company." The argument was that "the more diverse the teams, the more engaged they are in the work process, and the more effectively and creatively they approach problem-solving, leading to greater profitability and a stronger organisational culture." At the same time, diversity was emphasised in various aspects, with a particular focus on sexual orientation and gender identity.

In reality, as suddenly emboldened experts now point out, the U.S. Democratic Party was effectively attempting to influence public consciousness, urging people to accept the abandonment of traditional norms and ways of life that had developed over centuries—both in the United States and beyond. In this context, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was granted special authority, using the pretext of humanitarian aid to introduce new worldviews and values into people's inner lives.

It reached the point where, as our esteemed readers may recall, in 2020, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences began nominating films for the "Best Picture" Oscar only if they met mandatory "gender standards" in their themes, characters, and production teams. At least 30% of secondary and minor roles had to be played by representatives of specific demographic groups, primarily from the LGBT community.

Perhaps for this very reason, Trump immediately dispatched Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson, and Jon Voight to Hollywood as special envoys, calling them "my eyes and ears" and promising that their efforts would lead to a "golden age" for the industry.

Such overt pressure—quite literally—on people's consciousness gradually led to well-known figures openly identifying as members of the LGBT community or actively endorsing this trend.

For example, in 2022, NBA legend Dwyane Wade officially petitioned the Los Angeles Superior Court to change his son's name to a female one, requesting that his child be legally recognised as a girl "in all official documents." As Wade explained, he first had to "educate himself in order to understand his son."

That same year, Russia’s then-top female tennis player, Daria Kasatkina, publicly came out as homosexual. According to her, "Living in the closet, as they say, for a long time, is difficult, and doesn’t make sense. It will be stuck in your head until you say it." Following her coming out, Kasatkina shared photos online with figure skater Natalia Zabiiako.

And then it went even further. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) approved full gender equality among athletes for the first time in Olympic history at the Paris 2024 Games, ensuring an equal number of male and female participants. But where, one might ask, does this leave the fundamental principle of sportsmanship?

There are countless examples of such developments. And now, Donald Trump has returned to the Oval Office with his executive orders. As a result, in just the past few weeks, the DEI program has been phased out at major corporations such as Google, Walmart, Ford, Harley-Davidson, and others. The latest addition to this list is media giant Disney, which has decided to replace its long-standing "Diversity and Inclusion" performance metric—previously used to assess executive compensation—with a new "Talent Acquisition Strategy."

It is also worth mentioning Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, which has likewise ended its DEI program. The company now plans to develop new strategies focused on implementing "fair and consistent practices that mitigate bias for all."

Another striking indicator of how effective Trump’s approach has been in this regard is the following development. Several major news agencies recently revisited a 2023 BBC report highlighting Edgars Rinkēvičs as "Latvia's long-serving foreign minister Edgars Rinkevics has become the first openly gay head of state of a European Union nation." Rinkēvičs first came out in 2014 while serving as Latvia’s foreign minister.

Global media’s renewed interest in this matter stems from a January interview Rinkēvičs gave to Channel 4 News. When the journalist pointed out that he was "the first openly gay president in the world," Rinkēvičs simply replied, "That was a long time ago." He also noted that LGBT rights activists "went probably too far to one extreme."

What is happening now speaks for itself. Like many of the Biden administration’s initiatives—both domestically and internationally—the DEI program did not reflect the real needs of society. Yet, this agenda was promoted in every possible way, including at the so-called Summits for Democracy, held annually in the United States, where DEI was one of the key topics. Interestingly, in recent years, Azerbaijan and Türkiye were consistently excluded from these forums, while Armenia actively participated.

One way or another, we are witnessing changes not only in the broader geopolitical landscape but also in cultural and social norms. The speed at which major institutions are abandoning DEI clearly indicates that they had adopted these policies under pressure. But this was the reality of American Democratic Party politics—an ideological legacy that is now crumbling by the hour.