Dive Brief:
- Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed a law on Tuesday that will ban public colleges from funding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, continuing a nationwide push by conservatives to remove such programs from higher education.
- The legislation will also ban Alabama public colleges and K-12 schools, as well as state agencies, from requiring students or employees to take trainings, orientations or coursework that promote “divisive concepts.”
- The bill’s list of divisive concepts includes the ideas that a person of any race, sex or religion is inherently privileged or that anyone should acknowledge a sense of complicity based on those traits. The measure will take effect Oct. 1.
Dive Insight:
The Alabama DEI bill resembles language found in laws passed in Florida and Texas, as well as legislation being considered in Kentucky and Ohio.
But Alabama’s proposal went even further, said PEN America, a free expression advocacy group.
“The result would be a campus environment devoid of intellectual freedom, and a state law so draconian that it gives Florida a run for its money,” the organization said in February after the measure’s introduction.
The bill, SB 129, won’t prevent student or employee organizations from hosting DEI events as long as state funds are not used. But prior to the governor’s signature, PEN America said the legislation would still stymie programming for students.
“The bill would prohibit DEI offices and programming that determines participation based on identity group, which could include info sessions for international students or university recognition of the Black Student Union,” PEN America said. “And should public universities attempt to get around the severe measures in this bill by using federal or private funding, they will find themselves stymied by a clause prohibiting them from procuring any money to fund such activities.”
Public colleges will still be allowed to divide housing, athletic and social opportunities by sex under the new law. But they will be prohibited from letting people use a restroom that differs from their sex as assigned at birth.
The legislation will not supersede federal laws or accreditation standards. It also does not alter any previously established state law that may require Alabama boards and commissions to be inclusive and reflective of the state’s diversity.
Since the bill’s introduction in February, students and free speech advocates have pushed back on its contents.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama said the legislation uses wide-ranging, vague language and is intended to chill campus discourse.
“This is not only a form of classroom censorship, it’s an anti-truth bill which curtails an education on systemic inequities, racial violence, and the historic efforts to gain civil rights and civil liberties for marginalized communities throughout our nation’s history,” the organization said.
In a systemwide email Tuesday, the chancellor of the University of Alabama System and the presidents of its universities said they remain dedicated to ensuring their campuses remain welcoming environments and foster academic freedom and free expression.
“In the coming months, University leadership and legal counsel will assess the final language of the legislation to determine what actions are needed to ensure we can continue to fulfill our multifaceted missions in compliance with applicable state and federal law,” they wrote to faculty, staff and students.
The bill allows for several exceptions to the ban, including for research, academic freedom and accreditation standards, they said.
In 2022, the state’s public four-year colleges reported spending just over $16 million on DEI training, staffing and programming, according to AL.com. It is not yet clear if the legislation’s passage will result in employee layoffs.
