Bill to ban DEI in Oklahoma higher education heads to governor's desk

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – A bill to ban the use of state resources towards diversity, equity, and inclusion programs at Oklahoma universities and colleges is headed for the governor’s desk.

Senate Bill 796 was authored by Senator Adam Pugh (R-Edmond) and was carried on the House side by Rep. Denise Crosswhite Hader (R-Piedmont). It passed off the House floor with a 77-18 vote in favor of the measure. But not before a heated debate.

"I recognize that people of my generation are more open to differences because we've grown up having more access to empathy and understanding," said Rep. Arturo Alonso Sandoval (D-Oklahoma City).

Rep. Scott Fetgatter (R-Okmulgee) responded during his chance to debate the issue.

"The older generation, we got over these racial issues as a society decades ago before some of you were even born," said Fetgatter.

Minority Leader Rep. Cyndi Munson (D-Oklahoma City) said programs that encouraged young women were what pushed her to become a lawmaker.

"I'm the first Asian-American woman elected to the Oklahoma legislature, and it took until 2015 to make that happen," said Munson.

She and other Democratic lawmakers said that similar opportunities could disappear with the bill becoming law.

"DEI is about expanding understanding. It is about learning outside of yourself, and we are all very narrow in our views if we only consider our perspective," said Rep. Michelle McCane (D-Tulsa).

Crosswhite Hader argued that DEI programs have added unnecessary time and financial strain on college students who have been working towards a degree.

"This bill does not stop someone from studying a subject that they want to discuss,” said Crosswhite Hader. “What the bill does is stop state resources, which are taxpayer dollars from being used to drag out their education."