A new poll released Thursday highlights the deeply fractured opinions among Americans regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives on college campuses. The survey, conducted by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research in early May, found a near-even split between those who approve and those who oppose these often-controversial efforts.
According to the poll of 1,175 adults, approximately 40% of respondents favored DEI initiatives in colleges and universities, with roughly equal portions either opposing (30%) or remaining neutral (30%). This division underscores the contentious nature of DEI within the current socio-political landscape.
The poll’s findings show the partisan divide on the issue. A significant majority of Republicans, around 6 in 10, voiced their opposition to DEI programs in higher education. Conversely, the vast majority of Democrats, approximately 7 in 10, indicated their support for these initiatives on college campuses.
The sentiment of individual respondents further illustrates this partisan chasm. Robert Ayala, an 81-year-old independent voter leaning Republican, told the AP, “I’m dead set against DEI.”
The AP-NORC poll aligns with recent surveys suggesting a growing preference among voters for ending DEI programs. A January poll from The Economist/YouGov revealed that 45% of voters supported dismantling DEI programs in schools and government, compared to 40% who opposed such a move.
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These findings come amidst an effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to roll back DEI initiatives across various sectors, including higher education, K-12 schools, the private sector, and the federal government.
In April, President Trump signed an executive order to overhaul the higher education accreditation system, citing concerns that accreditors have “abused their authority” by imposing “discriminatory” DEI-based standards.
While some U.S. companies have begun to scale back their DEI policies in response to this pressure, some experts suggest that a quiet rebranding of these initiatives might be occurring rather than a complete abandonment, despite the administration’s crackdown.
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