Sen. Vance sends letter slamming Ohio State University DEI efforts, calling it ‘racial hatred’

Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) sent a letter slamming Ohio State University for its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts Friday.

“Today I wrote to the leadership of Ohio State, a university I love, to ask about the troubling rise of racial prejudice on campus,” Vance posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, alongside the letter Friday. “If universities keep pushing racial hatred, euphemistically called DEI, we need to look at their funding.”

The letter is addressed to the incoming president of Ohio State. In the letter, Vance says he is writing “to express frustration with the culture of” his alma mater, “and to understand how that culture might change once you become its president.”

“In particular, I am concerned by recent news reports that considerations related to ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ have been infused into the university’s hiring practices and curricula,” Vance said in the letter. 

Vance also called DEI “a modern gloss on racism, antisemitism, and other ancient prejudices” and called it a “rot” that “is pervasive at Ohio State.”

“Your presidency is the kind of change in leadership that I hope will be a serious review of these ideas, their legality, and their role on campus,” Vance continued. “I’d like to know whether and how you plan to right the ship.”

Vance isn’t a stranger to culture wars. In May, the Ohio Republican suggested that Target “decided to wage war” on customers by way of releasing a Pride Month collection, which it does annually.

“Target could have decided to stay out of the culture wars, instead it decided to wage war on a large share of its customer base,” Vance posted to X at the time. “I no longer shop at Target, and it seems many families are doing the same.”