The head of the Justice Department’s civil rights division is the first high profile official to resign from the Trump administration since the blue tsunami hit election night.
Harmeet Dhillon patted herself on the back for ushering in “the downfall of illegal DEI” and protecting women and girls’ sports in a post on social media.
Without elaborating, during her 18 months, the department shifted from protecting minorities’ rights against discrimination to dismantling many programs meant to protect them from discrimination. She sued numerous universities and law schools, accusing them of discriminating against many White and Asian students.
“I’m proud of all we’ve accomplished during this time to ensure our nation’s civil rights laws protect every American,” she wrote in the email to staff obtained by NPR. “I’m also grateful for the hard work of the dedicated employees within the Division and the rest of the Department of Justice.”
During her tenure, 300 career attorneys at the department left their jobs, with many encouraged to leave. Some of whom celebrated her departure.
“Harmeet Dhillon has been the most destructive, lawless, and hateful head of the Civil Rights Division in DOJ history,” said Stacey Young, a former division attorney. “Dhillon wielded the enormous power of the Justice Department to threaten universities, state and local officials, and election workers in spurious cases that rarely won in court.”
According to NJ.com, Dhillon told the White House of her intention to leave prior to the midterms but was asked to stay on until after the election.
Dhillon, who moved to Washington from San Francisco, is expected to return to private practice.
This article was first published on AsAM News.
AsAmNews is published by the non-profit Asian American Media Inc
