Across the U.S., companies are rolling back diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies in response to President Trump’s recent executive order, which mandates federal agencies eliminate DEI roles and offices within 60 days. According to WCCB, most companies in North Carolina are small businesses that never had formal DEI policies in place. However, larger corporations, including Lowe’s, scaled back their DEI efforts last year.
Since the executive order, major retailers like Target have discontinued DEI initiatives, while Costco has reaffirmed its commitment to them. Legal experts point to existing civil rights laws that protect against discrimination and predict potential lawsuits over the move to dismantle DEI efforts.