Immigration, diversity… Trump continues to stack measures

After having undertaken to dismantle federal programs to promote diversity, Donald Trump continued on Wednesday to pile up anti-immigration measures and announcements, while giving the first interview since his inauguration to Fox News.

The American president spoke on Wednesday with Sean Hannity, one of the star hosts of the conservatives’ favorite channel. The show is scheduled to air at 9 p.m. Washington time (3 a.m. Switzerland Thursday).

Mobilized army

The army will deploy “1,500 additional troops to the border” with Mexico under a decree signed by Donald Trump, its spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday during a very short exchange with journalists.

They will add to the more than 2,000 soldiers who are already present along this border, where migrants arrive mainly from Central and South America.

The new American administration has also suspended until further notice all arrivals in the United States of refugees who have requested asylum, including those who have obtained it, a decision which concerns thousands of people around the world.

The US Department of Justice has threatened local authorities with prosecution if they fail to implement the anti-immigration policies of Donald Trump, who has pledged to deport millions of undocumented people.

Forced leave

Another major focus of the 78-year-old billionaire’s first decisions: dismantling policies to promote diversity within the federal government.

All people employed by the federal administration in DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility) programs will be placed on forced leave.

The term “DEI”, which in human resources vocabulary designates the objectives of recruiting people from racial or sexual minorities in particular, has become one of the scarecrows of the American hard right.

In a statement Tuesday evening, the White House invoked “the constitutional promise of equality regardless of race” and the promotion of “merit”

Barely invested on Monday, the Republican signed a decree limiting the genders recognized by the State to two, “male and female”, thereby denying the official existence of transgender people.

Apologies demanded

The Episcopalian bishop of Washington, Mariann Budde, was moved by this ultra-conservative turn against the president on Tuesday. During a church service he attended, she expressed concern about the fear his policies sowed among immigrants and members of the LGBT+ community.

“This pseudo-bishop (…) was a left-wing radical, who hates Trump fiercely,” the American president said indignantly on his Truth Social network. “She and her church owe the public an apology!”

After the election of Donald Trump, several large American companies ended their diversity and inclusion programs, in particular Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), McDonald’s, the manufacturer Ford and Walmart supermarkets.

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