Biden orders federal agencies to advance racial equity

President Joe Biden signs Executive Order 13985 on January 20, 2021, directing federal agencies to advance racial equity and support underserved communities. The order tells agencies to assess whether their programs and policies create barriers for people of color and other underserved groups.\n\nThe order revokes the Trump administration’s Executive Order 13950 on race and sex stereotyping and instructs the Office of Management and Budget to identify methods for measuring equity. It frames racial equity as a government-wide responsibility rather than a single civil rights program.\n\nThe event is significant because it makes racial equity a formal management directive across the executive branch after nationwide protests over systemic racism and police violence in 2020.