最新杏吧原创

of the Cicero Institute, an Austin, Texas-based think tank, said Monday the group had been involved with the drafting of the Missouri legislation, sponsored by Rep. Doug Richey, R-Excelsior Springs.

He said students he meets on college campuses 鈥渄o not feel like they are empowered to speak their opinions in class.鈥�

The push in Missouri resembles actions by leaders in other Republican-led states 鈥� such as in Florida and Texas 鈥� to target 鈥渨oke鈥� ideology on college campuses.

鈥淭hese statements aren鈥檛 asking prospective employees or faculty members: 鈥楢re you a decent, respectful, kind person that can ... respect the opinions of others?鈥欌�� Richey said. 鈥淭hese are statements that are drilling down more specifically into political ideology.鈥�

Meyer said the Cicero Institute was involved in the Missouri effort.

鈥淲e sent our model language,鈥� he said.

The proposal would ban compelling, requiring, inducing or soliciting 鈥渄iversity, equity and inclusion statements鈥� from job applicants, employees, students and contractors at public universities.

The type of statement banned from job applications and from promotion opportunities is defined as a communication relating to an applicant鈥檚:

鈥� 鈥淩ace, color, religion, sex, gender, ethnicity, national origin, or ancestry, except when necessary to record required demographic information of such individual ... .鈥�

鈥� Their 鈥渧iews on, experience with, or past or planned contributions to efforts involving: diversity, equity, and inclusion; marginalized groups; antiracism; social justice; intersectionality; or related concepts.鈥�

鈥� Their 鈥渧iews on or experience with race, color, religion, sex, gender, ethnicity, national origin, ancestry, or other immutable characteristics of students and coworkers.鈥�

Rep. Stephanie Hein, a Springfield Democrat who is the former head of Missouri State University鈥檚 Department of Hospitality and Leadership, said that as a hiring administrator, 鈥渋t was important to know that my faculty could manage a conversation effectively 鈥� not subscribe to a belief.鈥�

Richey said nothing would stop a university from asking about how an applicant has handled 鈥渄iffering thoughts and opinions in the classroom.鈥�

鈥淏ut you can鈥檛 say the word 鈥榙iversity?鈥欌�� Hein asked.

鈥淚 just asked the question without even using the word 鈥榙iversity,鈥欌�� Richey said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 even have to use the word.鈥�

Said Hein: 鈥淪o as long as we don鈥檛 say 鈥榙iversity,鈥� 鈥榚quity鈥� or 鈥榠nclusion,鈥� we can 鈥� we should go all the way around it and get at what we need to do.鈥�

鈥淚 think this bill is absolutely discriminatory,鈥� said Rep. LaKeySha Bosley, D-最新杏吧原创, saying the state shouldn鈥檛 promote such an effort because 鈥渋t will drive our scholars out of their institutions as well as deplete our workforce.鈥�

This year鈥檚 proposal, at least partially based on model legislation from Cicero, follows passage of legislation in 2022 dealing with homelessness that one advocate called 鈥渋nsane.鈥�

That law, also based on model legislation advanced by Cicero, acts as a reversal of the popular 鈥渉ousing first鈥� policy, which aims to provide people foundational stability by getting them into permanent housing.

The Cicero Institute was launched in 2016 by Joe Lonsdale, a co-founder of the data-mining company Palantir and other tech companies. In a 2021 tweet, Lonsdale said 鈥淒EI: divisiveness, envy, insipidity,鈥� and 鈥渄on鈥檛 tolerate bad or racist ideas in your organization.鈥�

The legislation in Missouri resembles a recent directive to public universities by the office of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, asserting that diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives violate federal and state hiring laws, .

Lawmakers on the governmental accountability committee on Monday were also scheduled to consider legislation by Rep. Ben Baker, R-Neosho, that among other things would require medical schools receiving state funds to submit annual statements to state regulators affirming officials don鈥檛 require students to subscribe to 鈥渄iversity-equity-inclusion (DEI) ideologies.鈥�

The legislation is and .