The legal war on DEI begins: Missouri sues Starbucks over its diversity programs

Missouri sued Starbucks this week, alleging the chain’s push to hire and promote more people of color and women violated anti-discrimination laws and slowed down coffee orders.

Missouri sued Starbucks this week, alleging the chain’s push to hire and promote more people of color and women violated anti-discrimination laws and slowed down coffee orders. The lawsuit, filed by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, opens up a new legal front in the war on diversity in corporate America. It aims to strike down the most common diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs that Starbucks and other businesses use to expand opportunities for minorities, women and historically underrepresented groups. The legal challenge to Starbucks is an early sign of aggressive litigation seeking to roll back DEI by emboldened GOP-led states, private employees and federal agencies under President Donald Trump, legal experts say. “This is one of the first broadside attacks against the full menu of corporate DEI programs,” said Jason Schwartz, an attorney at Gibson Dunn. Starbucks denied Missouri’s allegations and said its policies were “designed to ensure the strongest candidate for every job every time.” Missouri’s suit comes as the Trump administration dismantles DEI efforts in the federal government and companies face significant pressure to change or abandon their policies. Trump signed an executive order threatening federal investigations for “illegal DEI,” and Attorney General Pam Bondi last week issued a memorandum promising that the Department of Justice would enforce these efforts, including criminally.