No matter what your political views are, there is no doubt that President Trump is already taking a lot of action in office, and it is already having heavy effects on people across America. While more bills and policies are being introduced by the day, and some executive orders have been implemented, it is important that citizens stay informed of what’s going on, especially those who will be effected heavily. So, here are some important policies that women should know, whether they are already in place, or are being introduced to be put in place.
Trump’s executive order on dei
A few weeks ago, Donald Trump passed several executive orders that redacted previous Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts within the federal government, and beyond it. DEI programs are intended to give everyone a fair opportunity for jobs, education, etc. no matter their gender, race, sex, sexual orientation, etc.
Now, the federal government has no DEI efforts, and this was done because Trump wanted things to be more merit-based. However, DEI programs are not intended to give people careers that aren’t qualified, but are intended to display and include all of the different types of people in the U.S. Beyond the government, now companies can roll back their DEI efforts, and some companies have, and can be found on this Forbes list.
How does this effect women? DEI programs have helped women push further into the government and work places, and helped them become more equal to men within work places. Stopping DEI efforts will most likely have a huge effect on women in the work place, and women who are seeking jobs in general, as well as any minorities.
More information can be found here:
Trump’s title IX regulations
Title IX is a law in education that protects anyone from discrimination based on sex and/or gender. The Biden administration had worked on adding protections for transgender people, specifically in bathroom and locker-room spaces, so that anyone could go into the space with the gender that they identified with.
However, now Trump has ordered for places of education to revert back to his regulations made in 2020, which force people to go to the locker-room, bathroom, etc. that their original sex is. This can be extremely harmful to transgender women, and will most likely do more harm than good. Even though the Trump administration thinks this helps women, this really just puts them back, especially survivors of sexual assault.
Another part of Title IX that will set women back is regarding college sports and NIL. The Biden administration had previously said that NIL payments would have to be equally split between woman athletes and male athletes. However, Trump’s administration has redacted that, so now most schools will put most money into football and mens basketball players, which is really just setting back women’s sports.
Overall, these Title IX regulations seem to be doing more harm than good for women, which defeats the whole purpose of Title IX.
More information can be found here:
Inside Higher Ed: Regulations made in 2020
Associated Press: NIL
Potential save act
Even though this has not been put into place yet, the Republican party is currently trying to make this act official, and proposed it as a bill. The Save Act is officially called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, and focuses on voting in America.
The SAVE Act makes it a lot harder to vote, as citizens would need to bring documents in person to register to vote, rather than just doing so by mail or virtually. Beyond that, if the ID presented does not show citizenship/your place of birth, then you must bring a birth certificate along with it.
This could effect women heavily, especially if you are married and take your husbands last name, since your current name wouldn’t match your birth certificate. Really, this act would just make it harder and more exclusive to vote, and redact efforts that have been made to make voting more inclusive and easier for everyone.
More information can be found here:
Trump on reproductive rights
During Trump’s previous presidency in 2016, he appointed judges to overturn Roe V. Wade, which set women’s rights and healthcare back many years. Putting him back in office threatens reproduction rights as a whole, and women’s healthcare as well.
In Project 2025, which Trump claims he has nothing to do with but has already passed many things within the manifesto, things like morning after pills and birth control are at risk of being banned. Some other threats to women’s healthcare are also threatened in the manifesto.
Even though nothing is confirmed, rolling back reproductive rights was a huge part of his campaign, so don’t be surprised if that is the case.
More information can be found here:
ACLU: Abortion Rights
HerCampus UConn Chapter: Project 2025
U.S. Recognizing 2 Sexes
Trump just passed a policy of recognizing only two sexes, which is male and female. Obviously this sets back a lot of people in the LGBTQ+ community, many of whom are women.
Similar to the Title IX regulations and rollback on DEI efforts and programs, only recognizing two sexes, this will most likely set back women in education, the workplace, and in the government.
More information can be found here:
Overall, currently America under Trump’s presidency seems to be hurting women, as well as other minorities, rather than helping them. Hopefully we see a shift in this soon, but don’t be afraid to speak up as long as you stay educated and informed.