Could it be that American institutions are already becoming fed up with the far-left countercultural initiative known as “diversity, equity, and inclusion?”
In a word, perhaps.
According to the Daily Wire, The University of North Carolina medical school has chosen not to follow the recommendation of its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) task force, which proposed incorporating “social justice” into the health sciences curricula in a letter to the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE).
The news follows the board’s decision several months ago to prohibit the inclusion of DEI statements in promotions, tenure, hiring, and admissions decisions. In the letter addressed to FIRE, the university clarified that it is disbanding the DEI task force and will not be implementing any of its recommendations.
“There is no plan to implement the Task Force’s recommendations now or in the future,” Kirsten Stevenson, UNC’s senior university counsel, said in a letter to FIRE, according to the outlet.
“Even if the recommendations were revisited in the future, further review and revision would be required,” she added, going on to note that the university is still “committed to these important missions.”
On April 7, FIRE addressed a letter to UNC expressing concerns about specific DEI initiatives and recommendations, including those related to the medical school curricula proposed by the DEI task force. The organization cautioned that the implementation of such policies might potentially violate the First Amendment.
In response, UNC communicated to the free speech organization that the recommendations put forth by the task force would not be put into effect.
UNC informed Fox News Digital that the DEI task force was established in 2019 and concluded its activities in 2020. They also confirmed that the School of Medicine’s DEI policies adhere to the accreditation requirements of the AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges).
In January, Color Us United, an organization advocating for a race-blind society, initiated a campaign urging the university to revoke its DEI policies for medical school staff and students. Their efforts involved lobbying school trustees, introducing bills to the state legislature, and utilizing social media to educate the public, Fox News Digital added.
Color Us United President Kenny Xu told the outlet the school’s decision is a win for the university, its med students, and their future patients.
“We’re proud of UNC’s decision to reject the DEI framework that lowers the quality of doctors and inundates their students with ideologies that have nothing to do with what is medically necessary,” he said.
“Our next step is to take UNC’s decision to other medical schools in our country to fully rid medicine from DEI’s divisive influence. We will also continue monitoring UNC’s School of Medicine to ensure that employees are not fed DEI trainings and curricula any longer,” he added.
