Funding is the Matter

DEI Rollback and Fall of Affirmative Action with Dr. Eddie Cole

Sarah Michelle Lee Bartley Productions Season 2 Episode 1

For this episode, I go through the pros and cons of affirmative action with HBCUs. I also talked with Dr. Eddie Cole about his book "The Campus Color Line: College Presidents and the Struggle for Black Freedom". In the interview, we discuss the hardships of Black presidents during the civil rights movement. (Keep in mind that this interview was recorded in June 2022). I follow this interview up with potential solutions to the rollbacks to DEI in corporate and educational spaces. 

 The Campus Color Line: College Presidents and the Struggle for Black Freedom by Dr. Eddie Cole (Link: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691206745/the-campus-color-line?srsltid=AfmBOoot5i6GwrxHHfaLDlp34PISR3zpF5U7A15utV_x0G336rNYWvVH) 

Resources: 

Bills in NC: 

Reduce Early Voting Period for Primaries (Link: https://ncleg.gov/Sessions/2025/Bills/House/PDF/H411v1.pdf)

House Bill 127 (Link: https://www.carolinajournal.com/nc-house-bill-to-ban-dei-agenda-in-state-and-local-government/


Articles on AI and Data Centers: 

1.  Georgia Senate committee passes bill to protect residents from data center costs (Link: https://thecurrentga.org/2025/02/25/georgia-senate-committee-passes-bill-to-protect-residents-from-data-center-costs/) 

2. Coal-fired power plant, now retired, to become massive gas-powered campus for AI, data centers (Link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/02/technology-ai-natural-gas-electricity-pennsylvania/66c1b050-0fd0-11f0-b319-ba9d1af23a2f_story.html) 


3. As internet data centers multiply, efforts to control them are growing(Link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/04/30/data-centers-regulations-northern-virginia-georgia-arizona/) 

Georgia OB/GYN 

1. Georgia’s Six-Week Abortion Ban Risks Worsening the State’s OB/GYN Shortage, According to Senate Testimony (Link: https://www.ossoff.senate.gov/press-releases/watch-georgias-six-week-abortion-ban-risks-worsening-the-states-ob-gyn-shortage-according-to-senate-testimony/)


2. More than 40% of Georgia’s counties are maternity care deserts (Link: https://www.ajc.com/news/health-news/more-than-40-of-georgias-counties-are-maternity-care-deserts/YTIJE6RD5ZHEFNKXU3XDQHBSXY/) 


Affirmative Action

1. Who really Benefits from Affirmative Action (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLz7fTsBjo0)

2. Palmer, R. (2008). The perceived elimination of affirmative action and the strengthening of historically Black colleges and universities. Journal of Black Studies, 40(4), 762–776. https://doi.org/10.1177/0021934708320729

3. A Referendum on Race Preferences Divides Michigan (https://www.chronicle.com/article/a-referendum-on-race-preferences-divides-michigan/)

4. Wise, T. (1998). Is Sisterhood Conditional? White Women and the Rollback of Affirmative Action. Feminist Formations, 10(3), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.2979/NWS.1998.10.3.1

5. Hawkins, S. (2020). Reverse Integration: Centering HBCUs in the Fight for Educational Equality. Social Science Research Network. https://doi.org/10.2139/SSRN.3684561


MSNBC

MSNBC Chews Up Black Women and Spits Them Out For Trump– Here’s the Proof (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=259nTmWjiSQ&t=3s)