President Joe Biden signed another four Executive Orders on Tuesday, this time seeking to bring about “racial equity.”
In one of the four orders, Biden instructed the Department of Justice not to renew private prison contracts, as The Daily Wire reported on Tuesday:
The order says that there are “a disproportionate number of people of color” currently incarcerated in the United States. It claims “privately operated criminal detention facilities consistently underperform Federal facilities with respect to correctional services, programs, and resources” that help prepare inmates to reenter society.
“There is broad consensus that our current system of mass incarceration imposes significant costs and hardships on our society and communities and does not make us safer,” the order reads. “To decrease incarceration levels, we must reduce profit-based incentives to incarcerate by phasing out the federal government’s reliance on privately operated criminal detention facilities.”
In addition to a directive to the DOJ, Biden ordered the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to fully implement the Fair Housing Act requirements.
Reacting to the EO, former HUD Secretary Ben Carson hit the Biden administration for framing the issues with housing in “racial terms.”
“We don’t need to do that,” Carson said on Fox News airwaves in response to the “racial” framing. “What we need to do, again, is look at the reasons that people are having trouble buying houses. A lot of times it’s because of the financing, and the way to financing was administered. And those are the kind of things we were working on very seriously, and have made some real progress on.”
In another EO, Biden “recommitted” the federal government to “respect Tribal sovereignty.” The Order reads in part:
American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Nations are sovereign governments recognized under the Constitution of the United States, treaties, statutes, Executive Orders, and court decisions. It is a priority of my Administration to make respect for Tribal sovereignty and self-governance, commitment to fulfilling Federal trust and treaty responsibilities to Tribal Nations, and regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with Tribal Nations cornerstones of Federal Indian policy. The United States has made solemn promises to Tribal Nations for more than two centuries. Honoring those commitments is particularly vital now, as our Nation faces crises related to health, the economy, racial justice, and climate change — all of which disproportionately harm Native Americans. History demonstrates that we best serve Native American people when Tribal governments are empowered to lead their communities, and when Federal officials speak with and listen to Tribal leaders in formulating Federal policy that affects Tribal Nations.
Racism against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders was condemned in another Biden EO:
Advancing inclusion and belonging for people of all races, national origins, and ethnicities is critical to guaranteeing the safety and security of the American people. During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, inflammatory and xenophobic rhetoric has put Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) persons, families, communities, and businesses at risk.
The Federal Government must recognize that it has played a role in furthering these xenophobic sentiments through the actions of political leaders, including references to the COVID-19 pandemic by the geographic location of its origin. Such statements have stoked unfounded fears and perpetuated stigma about Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and have contributed to increasing rates of bullying, harassment, and hate crimes against AAPI persons. These actions defied the best practices and guidelines of public health officials and have caused significant harm to AAPI families and communities that must be addressed.
Biden signs executive orders on racial equity:
*HUD addressing history of discriminatory housing
*DOJ will not renew contracts with private prisons
*Recommitting federal government to respect Tribal sovereignty
*Condemning racism toward Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders pic.twitter.com/WMvAvRGU22— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 26, 2021
As The Daily Wire highlighted, over the weekend, podcast host Kmele Foster argued on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” that policies concerning “racial equity” focus too much on “outcomes” rather than opportunity, lending to “great soundbites” that never fix actual problems. The focus on “racial equity and a focus disproportionately on outcomes is something that is rather new, but seems to have taken the country by storm,” Foster told Maher. As a “practical example” of “equity versus equality,” Foster highlighted our response to the China-originated novel coronavirus, and politicos’ attempts to racialize medical and financial aid.
“We know that the most vulnerable population when it comes to Covid are older people; if I take people over the age of 55, that’s 80% of the deaths. There have been actual conversations about prioritizing people on the basis of their race, because Covid is said to ‘disproportionally impact’ black people relative to white people,” Foster said. “It is a ridiculous proposition,” he asserted, “but it’s a proposition that has found its way in the mouths of governors — here in California, the pages of The New York Times, we’re actively talking about this kind of ridiculous … We can focus on the people who are vulnerable, without making this about race. Making this about race actually only obscures the actual issue…”