Dive Brief:
- North Carolina’s Legislature last week enacted a ban on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at the state's public colleges, overriding a veto from Democratic Gov. Josh Stein.
- Under the law, which went into effect immediately on June 24, public colleges in the state cannot maintain DEI offices or employees, nor can they "endorse divisive concepts." The law's examples of divisive topics include that a person of any race or sex is inherently privileged, that the U.S. was created to oppress members of a certain race or sex, or that "a series of power relationships and struggles among racial or other groups" has replaced the rule of law.
- Colleges will also be unable to make the "completion of a course related to divisive concepts" a graduation requirement. The law allows an exception for requirements deemed necessary by a college's chancellor, who must report those decisions to their institution's governing board.
Dive Insight:
North Carolina is the latest conservative-led state to enact anti-DEI legislation. Since 2023, some 17 states have enacted at least 33 laws to restrict DEI initiatives at colleges, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Moving forward, North Carolina public colleges are prohibited from "reporting or investigating offensive or unwanted speech that is protected by the First Amendment, including satire or speech labeled as microaggression," the law says. Each college must annually certify its compliance with the law.
The anti-DEI legislation aims to prevent public colleges from compelling students and employees "to affirm or profess belief in divisive concepts," a practice that some conservatives assert is commonplace.
"So-called 'DEI' programs promote a worldview that demands people, especially young students, judge others based on their race, sex, or other factors and attack true diversity of thought, stifle opportunity, and stoke division," the law's preamble says.
It cites President Donald Trump's January 2025 executive order targeting DEI at U.S. colleges and other “influential institutions of American society."
Nearly a year ago, Stein blocked the proposal, calling diversity North Carolina's strength.
"We should not whitewash history, police dorm room conversations, or ban books," Stein said in his July 2025 veto message. "Rather than fearing differing viewpoints and cracking down on free speech, we should ensure our students learn from diverse perspectives and form their own opinions."
Last week, Stein criticized conservative lawmakers' focus on DEI issues over other state challenges.
"Members of the General Assembly are stoking the culture wars that divide us rather than fulfilling their long-overdue responsibility of passing a budget," he said in a June 24 statement.
The new North Carolina law's list of divisive concepts pulls heavily from model policies published by the Goldwater Institute, a libertarian think tank.
Tim Minella, director of higher education at the institute's center for constitutional advocacy, praised the legislation last week.
"Throughout the country, public universities force students to spend time and tuition dollars on DEI courses just to obtain a degree," he said in a June 24 statement. "These required DEI courses lecture students on the so-called 'oppression' that allegedly pervades American society."
North Carolina Republicans also passed a similar anti-DEI bill focused on K-12 education over a veto from Stein
