Dr. Carol M. Swain, author and retired university professor who was tenured at Vanderbilt and Princeton, has published her latest book titled, Diversity Without Discrimination: How to Promote a Culture of Unity in a Post-DEI/Affirmative Action World.
Swain sat down with The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy for an exclusive interview on Thursday to discuss her latest book, which is set to be released on April 15.
The 142-page book, Swain said, builds on the ideas presented in her 2023 book titled, The Adversity of Diversity.
“The Diversity Without Discrimination book itself is a separate book, but it builds on the Adversity of Diversity which predicted the fall of affirmative action and DEI. And I was right, by the way,” Swain said on Thursday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show.
Swain said the book discusses President Donald Trump’s executive orders eliminating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in federally-funded programs and revoking President Lyndon B. Johnson’s 1965 Equal Employment Opportunity executive order, which required federal contractors to take affirmative action in the hiring process.
“People are panicking because President Trump signed executive orders ending DEI in federally supported programs. What seems to have been missed, and this is one thing the book talks about, is that he also signed an executive order eliminating 60 years of affirmative action,” Swain explained.
“He overturned Johnson’s executive order, and that was something we thought Reagan would do. Reagan didn’t do it. Bush didn’t do it. Trump 1.0 didn’t do it. Trump 2.0 did it, and it doesn’t seem to get much attention as everyone’s talking about DEI. DEI is late to the game. It is affirmative action on steroids,” Swain added.
Swain said the book makes the case that diversity is able to exist without discrimination, which she noted was the ultimate goal of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution.
“The big story is that affirmative action is gone, and my book is positive in that it argues that the sky’s not falling. We can have diversity without discrimination. What President Trump has done takes us back to where we were supposed to be, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution,” Swain said.
“I think people will enjoy the book. It’s a little bit shorter than the Adversity of Diversity, but it’s a good read,” Swain added.
Watch the full interview:
Tune in now to hour 2 of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show – your AMERICA FIRST news talk
– Watch LIVE here on X
– Listen on Spotify
– Listen on WENO AM760 in Nashville
– Read more at @TheTNStar https://t.co/brGjlExvib— MichaelPatrick Leahy (@michaelpleahy) April 10, 2025
– – –
Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
