Oppose Extremist Andrea Lucas for Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

Trump has nominated conservative activist Andrea Lucas to be the Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC was established by Congress as an independent federal agency at the same time as the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC’s core mission is to prevent and remedy unlawful employment discrimination and to advance equal opportunity for all in the workplace.

Lucas is currently the Acting Chair of the EEOC, despite having only a few years of experience as a lawyer who represented the interests of employers. During her brief tenure as EEOC Acting Chair, Lucas has abused her position to launch unlawful investigations against Trump’s critics and adversaries, shaking down law firms under the guise of “illegal DEI” programs, and thwarting free speech in universities—in some cases, even sending questionnaires to faculty on their personal cell phones asking if they identify as Jewish. She also has announced her intent to prosecute employers for engaging in “anti-American national origin discrimination”—in other words, for hiring workers who were not born in the United States. She has specifically targeted the rights of LGBTQIA+ workers, ending EEOC investigations of LGBTQIA+ workplace discrimination. In her short time as Acting Chair, Lucas has used her position to weaponize the EEOC’s core mission.

All workers should be able to depend on the EEOC to protect their rights. Lucas’s confirmation would further the Trump administration’s elimination of legal checks and balances and weaponize the EEOC to increase workplace discrimination. It is critical that the Senate reject Lucas’s nomination.