Gov. Patrick Morrisey Ends Diversity, Equity, Inclusion at West Virginia University

West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey on Friday released a statement on his elimination of West Virginia University’s Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).

“Several weeks ago, I came to you during my inaugural address to talk about how we needed to eradicate the woke virus in our schools. We emphasized the importance of getting rid of DEI out of West Virginia state government,” Morrisey, the recently inaugurated governor, said in a video statement. “The very next day, I issued a series of executive orders, one of which was to eliminate DEI out of state government. I directed my cabinet officials, agency heads, and others, and any entity receiving state resources, to take steps to eliminate DEI.”

Morrisey said his actions to end controversial diversity, equity, and inclusies on policiwill serve to ensure equal protection under the law:

This is important for a lot of different reasons. I’m a believer, like many of you, that God looks at us, the rule of law looks at us, as equals. We have an equal protection clause. We care about the rule of law. We care about freedom. We don’t want special preferences unlawfully benefitting one group over another – race, color, age, ethnicity. We have to make sure we’re taking steps to treat everyone the same under the law. We know that there was a very big Supreme Court decision several years ago that made major steps in that direction.

Well, after this executive order, I’m pleased to report that there’s some good news on this front. Today, West Virginia University announced that it was eliminating its Division of DEI. This is a big win for the Mountain State. I want to applaud WVU for the actions that it’s taken. This is really critical. I know there’s always a lot of pressure to do the wrong thing – here is West Virginia, we’re going to do the right thing and we’re going to make sure that West Virginia always stands for freedom, the rule of law, and the American ideal. We’re going to keep going – this is just the beginning of our effort to root out DEI. [Emphasis added]

“That’s going to happen more and more in the weeks and months ahead. But I wanted to report this to you, because it’s another win along the way,” he concluded in his statement.

Morrise in mid-January, during his inauguration address, promised to revitalize the Mountain State’s economy by launching his “backyard brawl” economic agenda:

It’s time for West Virginia to become a national leader in economic growth and job creation.

Our strategy is clear and bold. We’ll simplify our outdated tax code and cut the state income tax, making it lower than any state that we touch. We are going to put more money back in your pockets.

We will streamline government, cutting the red tape that chokes small businesses and deters investment. Our plan will make West Virginia the freest, most dynamic state in the nation.

When businesses look for a place to grow, they will see incredible opportunities here in West Virginia.

He explained in an interview with Breitbart News in July at the Republican National Convention, “West Virginia really has an opportunity to lift itself up tremendously. Our standard of living, our educational attainment drive workforce participation, and I’m an advocate that we can do that while maintaining our West Virginia conservative values.”