Biden signs racial equity executive order directing federal agencies to pursue equity agenda

On his first day, President Biden signs Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities, directing every federal agency to undertake an equity assessment of its programs and policies and embed equity as a core principle. The order defines "equity" as the consistent and systematic fair, just, and impartial treatment of all individuals. It rescinds Trump's 1776 Commission, which had produced a report dismissing structural racism, and establishes an Equity in Federal Programs interagency task force. Biden also simultaneously revokes Trump's September 2020 executive order banning diversity training in the federal workforce. The order represents the beginning of Biden's most ambitious domestic civil rights agenda, a whole-of-government commitment to dismantling structural barriers facing Black, Latino, Indigenous, LGBTQ, and other underserved communities.