'Squad' member Rep. Pressley fumes over GOP’s anti-DEI bill: Keep MLK’s name ‘out of your mouths’

Progressive lawmaker and member of "The Squad," Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., ripped House Republicans last week for promoting a new bill that would weaken diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives within the government.

During a House Oversight Committee hearing on Wednesday, Pressley ripped the proposed legislation in a speech, accusing its GOP proponents of denying the history of racism in the United States, as well as its current prevalence.

"And I’d also just like to take a personal note of privilege to say, please keep Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s name out of your mouths," Pressley told the bill’s supporters, adding that they’ve made a "perversion of his words" in advancing their agenda.

As pointed out by the bill’s creator, Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Texas, during the hearing, the Dismantle DEI Act seeks to eliminate DEI offices in the federal government, end DEI requirements for federal contractors and grant applicants, and provide oversight to ensure tax dollars aren’t being used to pay for race-based policies and other similarly divisive initiatives.

In his remarks, Cloud argued DEI "undermines the progress we’ve made – progress that took generations, hard-fought battles, and even a Civil War to achieve. From the abolition of slavery to the victories of the civil rights movement, Americans have worked tirelessly to right the wrongs of discrimination."

Despite the bill being passed by the House Oversight Committee in a 23-17 vote, Pressley mounted an impassioned takedown of the bill, during which she insisted Republican lawmakers do not acknowledge America’s racist roots and are using bills like this one to block attempts to rectify racial inequalities.

She began, "This bill, titled The Dismantling DEI Act, is an utter disgrace… Now, I’ll work with anyone serious about progress who wants to center the people who call this country home. This isn’t it."

The lawmaker continued, pointing out what she perceived was an inconsistency in the bill.

"But we are debating legislation that denies the sky is blue, water is wet, and racism is real. The major provision of the bill says to ban anything that acknowledges racism. And a few pages later, in the exact same bill, there are multiple provisions discussing the presence of racism," she said.