‘Turning Back the Clock’: Fury as Trump Adminstration Scraps Ban on Segregated Facilities for Federal Contractors—Critics Slam Move as ‘Jim Crow 2.0
A contract clause has been deleted from federal regulations that prohibits establishments doing business with the government from having segregated waiting rooms, drinking fountains or transportation.
The segregation clause is one of several changes imposed by the General Services Administration following President Donald Trump’s executive order eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion efforts by the federal government. It in effect, repeals an executive order signed 60 years ago by President Lyndon Johnson that set the rule on federal contractors and nondiscrimination.
Melissa Murray, a constitutional law professor at New York University, told NPR the move is largely symbolic, “but it’s incredibly meaningful in its symbolism.”
“These provisions that required federal contractors to adhere to and comply with federal civil rights laws and to maintain integrated rather than segregated workplaces were all part of the federal government’s efforts to facilitate the settlement that led to integration in the 1950s and 1960s,” she said. “The fact that they are now excluding those provisions from the requirements for federal contractors, I think, speaks volumes.”
Fortunately, the changes do not mean businesses, whether they have government contracts or not, can ignore laws, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits segregated facilities.
The altered clause, part of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, or FAR, is a massive document providing agencies with guidelines for contracts reached with any entity providing goods or services to the federal government.
Clause 52.222-21 is titled “Prohibition of Segregated Facilities” and states: “The Contractor agrees that it does not and will not maintain or provide for its employees any segregated facilities at any of its establishments and that it does not and will not permit its employees to perform their services at any location under its control where segregated facilities are maintained.”
Those included work areas, restaurants, drinking fountains, transportation, housing, and more, and it plainly states the segregation based on “race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin.”
The memo outlining the changes was issued last month but didn’t draw much attention until NPR’s report on Tuesday. It instructs civil agencies to no longer include the provision and clause about the “Prohibition of Segregated Facilities” when issuing new solicitations or contacts.
According to Reuters, Trump and his allies are defending his actions by saying the order aims to remove what they call discrimination against other Americans, including white people and men.
“While segregation is still illegal, this change sends a CLEAR message,” civil rights attorney Ben Crump said.
One federal worker who was granted anonymity by NPR for fear of losing their job told the news agency that the implementation of the change is “subverting democracy.”
“You’re supposed to allow agencies to comment on this, contracting officers to comment on it, and think through the implications carefully,” said the worker who prepares such contracts. “By doing this, they’re essentially ramming things through, hoping no one’s going to notice.”
Asked why the agency did not follow the usual public notice and comment procedure when removing the segregated facilities clause, GSA spokesperson Will Powell wrote in a statement, “GSA has taken immediate action to fully implement all current executive orders and is committed to taking action to implement any new executive orders.”
Kara Sacilotto, an attorney who specializes in federal contracts, said she believes the clause was flagged because the Obama administration had revised it to include “gender identity.” That executive order has since been rescinded by Trump, she said.
“And so, along with [Trump’s] other executive orders about gender identification, I would suspect that is the reason why this one got identified on the list,” she said.
But, as NPR notes, the memo does not say to exclude just the “gender identity” part of the clause but rather the entire clause.
Ibrahim Hooper, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), said in a statement that the nation must guard against “turning back the clock” to the days when racism was codified into law.
“As our nation unfortunately becomes more divided and polarized, the last thing we need is any effort that could be perceived as allowing racial segregation,” Hooper said.
Axios notes that federal agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security and the National Institutes of Health, have already adopted the changes.
Many on social media were aghast at the implications of the clause’s removal.
“Trump removed an explicit ban on segregated facilities like waiting rooms, restaurants & drinking fountains for federal contractors,” wrote one X user. “Read that again. He didn’t ban segregated facilities, which have been banned for over 60 years, but he removed a ban on them, making Jim Crow legal.”