Former Trump official backs Texas bill that would ban diversity offices at public universities
Ben Carson testified before a Texas Senate subcommittee supporting the legislation.
TEXAS, USA – A Texas House committee is expected to soon adopt a bill that would limit how public universities in the state can promote and incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.
SB 17 bans mandatory diversity training at those universities and would force them to close their DEI offices.
Former U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson is on record in support of the bill and told Inside Texas Politics why.
“What we especially don’t want to do is implement policies that polarize and create divisions between groups of people,” he said.
Carson testified in support of SB 17 before a Texas Senate subcommittee last month.
The Republican says the country changed dramatically in his lifetime with tremendous advances in racial diversity and equality.
And he told us part of the reason he testified is because he grew up in a time where real racism existed.
The pediatric neurosurgeon says there is no single-race institution today, so there’s no need to fix a problem that doesn’t exist.
“Racial issues are not the same as they used to be, so why should we take them out and put them on a pedestal once again? We don’t need to do that. We need to build on the progress we’ve already made,” Carson told us.
SB 17 passed the Texas Senate by one party vote.
It was referred to the Texas House Committee on Higher Education, where a public hearing is scheduled for May 8.
