Stockholm rejects ‘bizarre’ US letter urging city to scrap diversity initiatives

A metropolis authoritative successful Stockholm has said the municipality has nary plans to comply aft 1 of its offices received a missive seeking to enforce Donald Trump’s rollback of diverseness measures, successful what is believed to beryllium the archetypal specified missive sent to a overseas government.

“It’s truthful bizarre,” said Jan Valeskog, Stockholm’s vice-mayor for planning. “It’s our governmental priorities that count, not the ones from this embassy oregon immoderate different embassies.”

In March, European officials lambasted the US aft companies crossed the continent said they had received letters informing them that the Trump administration’s crackdown connected diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives besides applied to overseas firms looking to bash concern with the US government.

The missive – described by French officials arsenic “a signifier of interference” – asked recipients to complete, motion and instrumentality a signifier certifying that they “do not run immoderate programmes to beforehand diversity, equity and inclusion”.

The missive added: “If you bash not hold to motion this document, we would admit it if you could supply elaborate reasons, which we volition guardant to our ineligible teams.”

In Stockholm, Valeskog said helium had received the missive connected Tuesday. “We were truly surprised, due to the fact that diversity, equality and inclusion are values that we strive for and basal up for successful Stockholm,” helium said. “It’s precise important for us.”

He presumed the missive was sent to the readying bureau due to the fact that it was listed arsenic a payee, fixed that it charges for gathering permits. Still, it was the archetypal clip helium had heard of 1 of these letters being directed astatine a municipality oregon overseas government. “It’s rather unique,” helium said.

After Valeskog spoke to the Swedish paper Dagens Nyheter astir the letter, emails and societal media responses came pouring successful from metropolis residents and others crossed Sweden. “Thousands of radical are truly upset,” helium said. “I conjecture astir radical are pursuing the quality astir what is happening successful the States. But abruptly it felt person with these demands.”

For months – contempt probe showing that companies with greater sex and taste diverseness are much apt to importantly outperform their peers – Trump’s medication has opposed efforts to guarantee that radical of each backgrounds, including historically marginalised groups specified arsenic women and radical of colour, tin summation a foothold and thrive astatine organisations.

Valeskog said Stockholm had nary volition of complying. “Of course, we’ll not motion it, we won’t instrumentality it, we’ll bash thing astir it,” helium said. “So present it’s up to the embassy to determine what happens next.”

The spate of US letters comes astatine a delicate infinitesimal for the transatlantic relationship, which has been near rattled by threats of escalating tariffs, security concerns and the Signal leaks that laid bare the Trump administration’s disdain for Europe.

On Tuesday Valeskog called connected the embassy, with whom they had traditionally had a bully relationship, to retreat the letter. Two days later, determination had been nary reaction. “They don’t person an ambassador, possibly that’s the crushed – I don’t know,” helium said.

After describing the fallout implicit the missive arsenic “their headache, not ours” earlier successful the week, helium again stressed that the US embassy stood to suffer overmuch much if it decided to interruption disconnected its narration with the municipality. “The embassy present and past needs our gathering permits, of course, truthful it’s successful their involvement to person a bully interaction and practice with the metropolis of Stockholm,” helium said. “And truthful this is truly strange.”

He said his bureau would proceed to hold for immoderate benignant of effect from the Americans. “I mean it’s rather large news, not lone successful Sweden but besides successful different countries,” helium said. “So we’ll spot what happens.”