The Trump administration withdrew its appeal of a federal court ruling that blocked the government from cutting federal funds from schools and colleges that promoted diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
The recent move upholds a Maryland federal judge’s August 2025 rulingthat found the White House’s move violated the First Amendment and would have caused “millions of educators to reasonably fear that their lawful, and even beneficial, speech might cause them or their schools to be punished.”
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The Trump administration did not respond to Word In Black’s request for comment.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, one of the groups that sued the administration, said the White House’s withdrawal, which effectively ends the case, is a victory for kids.
The Trump administration “attempted to rewrite and redefine opportunity to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion and threatened schools and districts with penalties if they failed to comply,” Weingarten said in a statement. “It took a union to stand in the stead of kids and educators who feared retribution from the government.”
Why Did Educators Sue the Trump Administration?
In a “Dear Colleague” letter sent last February, the Department of Education threatened to pull hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding from schools that violated the administration’s ban on diversity, equity, and inclusion policies, such as teaching American history lessons that acknowledge systemic racism.
The administration later required schools to certify they would refrain from teaching about DEI.
In response, a coalition of organizations, including the AFT, the American Sociological Association, and an Oregon school district, sued the administration, accusing it of attempting to restrict schools from teaching about race and race-related topics.
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Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, the organization that represented the coalition in court, said in a statement that the federal court ruling struck a blow against the Trump administration’s “unlawful crusade against civil rights.”
“Today’s dismissal confirms what the data shows: government attorneys are having an increasingly difficult time defending the lawlessness of the president and his cabinet,” she said in a statement. “And, when people show up and resist, they win. This is a welcome relief and a meaningful win for public education.”