Gov. Ivey signs anti-DEI bill into law
Video above: Alabama lawmaker introduces bill to remove DEI programs in higher education
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has signed a bill allowing public entities and colleges to drop their DEI programs.
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On Tuesday, lawmakers passed SB-129, which will prohibit public entities like schools and universities from promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that Republican Sen. Will Barfoot, the bill's author, says relate to divisive concepts.
Those divisive concepts include the idea that 鈥渁ny individual should accept, acknowledge, affirm, or assent to a sense of guilt, complicity, or a need to apologize on the basis of his or her race, color, religion, sex, ethnicity, or national origin.鈥�
The proposed legislation said schools could not fund initiatives that teach those concepts or require students and employees to attend 鈥渁ny training, orientation, or course work that advocates for or requires assent to a divisive concept, require students as part of any required curriculum or mandatory professional training.鈥�
鈥淭his bill is an attempt to pull the divisive languages out of schools, out of the classrooms to teach history accurately, fairly so that everybody can be recognized regardless of the color of skin, sex (or) national origin,鈥� Barfoot said.
Also tucked into the bill is a requirement for students at public universities in the state to use restrooms that align with the sex they were assigned at birth.
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The governor issued the following statement:
"My Administration has and will continue to value Alabama's rich diversity, however, I refuse to allow a few bad actors on college campuses 鈥� or wherever else for that matter 鈥� to go under the acronym of DEI, using taxpayer funds, to push their liberal political movement counter to what the majority of Alabamians believe. We have already taken action to prevent this in our K-12 classrooms, and I am pleased to sign SB129 to protect our college campuses. Supporting academic freedom, embracing diversity of cultures and backgrounds and treating people fairly are all key components of what we believe in Alabama, and I am more than confident that will continue."
The bill was hotly debated by local lawmakers, including Sen. Merika Coleman, who warned that people may lose their jobs over "somebody's opinion," and Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin, who urged students to seek education out of state.
"If supporting inclusion becomes illegal in this state, hell, you might as well stand in front of the school door like Gov. Wallace," Woodfin said.
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The law will take effect on Oct. 1, 2024.
You can read the full bill .
The Associated Press contributed to this report.