Statement on the Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping

September 28, 2020

Women of Color Advancing Peace, Security, and Conflict Transformation (WCAPS) denounces  the White House’s Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping. The Executive Order’s claim that social and political identities interfere with the inherent and equal dignity of every person as an individual, blatantly ignores racial and gender barriers that have stood against women and people of color throughout history. Eliminating terms like “racism” and “sexism” does not solve the institutional and systematic issues that exist based on race and gender. Ignoring these terms does not make the problems go away. Instead, it allows those problems to exist and to fester without a light being shined on them. Likewise, removing training on diversity, inclusion and equity does not reduce the need for these trainings and their benefit to the federal government and the American public. At a time when the country is facing a barrage of divisiveness and racial strife, we need to seek ways of redress and processes that can help lead to unification.

Diversity training helps to create more effective and productive policies. Among countless benefits, it teaches us to be more aware of unconscious bias, to communicate better with communities unfamiliar to our own, and positively impacts our treatment and tolerance towards others. In a country that reflects the global stage, our diversity is our greatest asset. Culture is naturally resistant to change. They are most impactful when implemented not just once but as an ongoing and regular component of training. Instead of eliminating training, efforts should be made to determine the ways in which existing training can be continually improved and strengthened.

The exceptionalist policies in the Executive Order only strengthen white supremacy, perpetuate racism and sexism, and devalue women and people of color, making our work at WCAPS that much more important. WCAPS is a platform devoted to women of color and brings diverse voices and perspectives to policy discussions on a domestic and international scale. We are built on the fundamental idea that global issues demand a variety of perspectives. To succeed in our work in a country that continues to reinforce systematic racism and white supremacy, we must challenge the institutions upholding racial and gender inequality. Those challenges must come from many sources, including the government.

It is clear from the recent Government Accounting Office Reports on diversity, equity and inclusion at the US Department of State and USAID that additional steps are needed to ensure that the US government reflects the diversity of the United States. It is even more clear from this EO that achieving diversity still requires work. We reassert the points in the OrgsInSolidarity Sign-On Statements as we stand against racism and discrimination in all their forms. We recognize our differences and embrace the strengths that we each provide, working together to build a more diverse and inclusive community that ensures the peace and security of all.