The affected will be relieved of their duties with retained salary from Wednesday afternoon onwards. All public websites about diversity, equality, and inclusion will be shut down, writes AP.
In his presidential order, Trump accuses former President Joe Biden of having encouraged discrimination in "practically all aspects of the federal government" through the promotion of diversity programs, reports NPR.
All education about diversity, equality, and inclusion, and related contracts, will according to Trump's order be terminated. State employees are urged to report to Trump's personnel agency if they suspect that any program working with these issues has changed its name to conceal its purpose.
Private sector
Tuesday's order also urges prosecutors to create a plan to "deter" the private sector from starting or continuing so-called DEI programs (diversity, equity, inclusion).
By Thursday at the latest, authorities are urged to compile a list of federal diversity offices and employees, and by next week, they should develop a plan to implement a "reduction measure" against these employees.
"These programs divided Americans by race, wasted taxpayers' money, and resulted in shameful discrimination", writes OPM, the agency responsible for personnel matters within the state apparatus, in a proposal for an email template to affected employees.
"Merit-based" employment
Trump believes that the affected initiatives are discriminatory and therefore insists on restoring strictly "merit-based" employment.
The step is seen as the first of several to strike down diversity initiatives across the country. Among other things, investigations are expected into private companies that conduct training and have employment methods that conservative critics consider discriminatory against non-minority groups.
The order picks up where Trump's first administration left off four years ago. Then, the President issued an executive order that prohibited federal authorities' contractors and recipients of federal funding from conducting training that included concepts such as systemic racism.
Biden immediately revoked the order when he became President and instead issued orders to promote such initiatives within the state apparatus.
