A Deeper Look Into Texas Senate Bill 17
Last Wednesday, upon hours of deliberation, the Texas Senate approved Senate Bill 17, which would restrict public universities’ activities surrounding promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion both in hiring practices as well as with faculty, staff, and students.
Writer Kate McGee, in her 2023 article for the Texas Tribune, “Texas Senate Approves Bill that Would Ban Diversity Programs in Public Universities”, writes, Senate Bill 17… would require universities to close their diversity, equity and inclusion offices… also ban mandatory diversity training and restrict hiring departments from asking for diversity statements, essays in which job applicants talk about their commitment to building diverse campuses.”
Several senators who voiced their opposition for the bill were concerned that it would create a hostile environment for people from minority groups in addition to negatively impacting both the reputation and financial structure of public universities such as Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), Asian American Public Institutions (AAPIs), etc.
Democratic Senator of Laredo Judith Zaffirini stated, “Senate Bill 17 will be a giant step backward in our quest for equal opportunity and equal worth for all. … I worry that stifling diversity, equity and inclusion on our academic campuses … will breed the negative attitudes and behaviors typically attributed to ignoramuses while stifling the development of tolerant, enlightened communities.”
Lt. Governor Dan Patrick issued a statement following the passage of the bill, stating, “Texans have some of the best higher educational opportunities available nationwide, right here at home. However, DEI hiring practices have caused division and must be stopped… the woke left’s drive to divide Texans is never-ending. Today, the Texas Senate passed SB 17 to ban divisive DEI offices and hiring practices at our universities to make sure that individual merit and achievement are rewarded.”
Republican Senator of Conroe Brandon Creighton, the originator of the bill, argues that by having DEI offices present, the student and faculty bodies are forced to adopt certain political beliefs. “DEI programs have been shown to be exclusive, they have been shown to be ineffective and they have shown to be politically charged,” he states. “Many of these programs have been weaponized to compel speech instead of protecting free speech.”
The future ramifications of how this bill will play out across the state is still to be seen. In the state of Texas alone, the demographic is largely minority with 40.2% being Hispanic. Even with the influx of companies and families from all over the U.S, it is safe to say minority groups will continue to be the majority in every major arena, especially higher education.
This dynamic makes conservative predominantly White-Caucasian groups very uncomfortable. Uncomfortable to the point where they are resorting to unethical measures to attempt to control the demographic within the political arena. Much like the unfathomable outcomes surrounding overturning Roe v. Wade and banning abortions, the possibility of violence is far greater than ever before. In the era of school shootings across all four levels of education, banning DEI will not only heighten the rhetoric being reinforced in high schools regarding Critical Race Theory, but it has the potential of recreating a racial fever pitch environment at the college level that the United States has not seen since the 60’s and 70s.
