In the News: Conservative Cancel Culture is Coming for Diversity in Congress
“House Office of Diversity & Inclusion could be a culture war casualty”
Roll Call
Justin Papp
June 28, 2023
Excerpts from the story:
The House office tasked with attracting and supporting diverse staff could succumb to Republican cuts, despite protests from some staffers, advocacy groups and Democrats.
Appropriators last week reported out a fiscal 2024 Legislative Branch bill that would strip the House Office of Diversity and Inclusion of its funding. The move would eliminate the office while shifting some of its functions to the Office of the House Chief Administrative Officer as part of a planned reorganization of services, according to Republicans on the committee.
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“Voting to strip funding from the Office of Diversity Inclusion is just, frankly, a brazen attempt by Republicans to make the halls of Congress less representative of America,” said Michael Suchecki, a spokesperson from the Congressional Progressive Staff Association, who works in the office of Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton. “Republicans go on and on about cancel culture. But Republicans are trying to cancel representation and whitewash Congress. It’s unconscionable.”
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A Democratic amendment that would’ve restored funding for the ODI fell short on a party-line vote.