A House Republican took to social media on Wednesday, accusing the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) of changing an official’s title as it appears on their website to circumvent President Donald Trump’s executive order banning diversity, equity, and inclusion programs (DEI) across U.S. government institutions.
“The ATF defied @realDonaldTrump’s order to place DEI workers on leave, instead giving their DEI officer a new title,” Missouri Representative Eric Burlison posted on X (formerly Twitter). The post includes two staff pictures taken from the ATF’s website of Lisa Boykin, with the first one listing her as ‘Chief Diversity Officer” and then the same picture with the title of “Senior Executive.”
Burlison has been part of a broader crusade against the ATF, having introduced a bill in the House this month calling for its abolition, which was originally put forward by former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz in 2023. “They attack citizens’ rights, ignore leadership, and act as though they’re above the law. Enough is enough,” Burlison continued in his post about Boykin. “Time to abolish the ATF!”
While the ATF has yet to respond to Burlison’s accusation, other heads of federal agencies are already communicating to their staff that they are complying with the order, and warning of consequences for employees that take actions to defy it. “We are aware of efforts by some in government to disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language,” NASA’s Acting Administration Janet Petro wrote in an internal email to staff regarding DEI programs. “There will be no adverse consequences for timely reporting this information. However, failure to report this information within 10 days may result in adverse consequences.”
President Trump’s executive order has called for an end to what he calls “illegal and immoral discrimination programs” brought on by Biden’s DEI policies “in areas ranging from airline safety to the military.” It is part of a broader push from the executive branch to roll back longstanding civil rights policies, as Trump has also revoked an executive order signed by Johnson in 1965 mandating that federal contractors ensure equal treatment of employees “without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.”
