The Cook County Clerk’s office isn’t here for Donald Trump’s latest stunt to erase diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. Monica Gordon, the county’s clerk, has made it crystal clear: she won’t be taking orders from a president hellbent on stripping rights from marginalized communities.
On his first day back in office, Trump took a sledgehammer to DEI initiatives—placing federal employees on leave, axing equality training, and ordering the removal of gender pronouns from email signatures. The message? DEI is dead in his America. But in Cook County? Not on Gordon’s watch.
Marking her 100th day in office, Gordon detailed how Trump’s policies have already sent waves of panic through the community. Same-sex couples and immigrant families are flooding the clerk’s office, scrambling to secure records before their rights are further stripped. “We are seeing the devastating effects of the federal administration’s threatening rhetoric and cruel policies,” she said.
To push back, Gordon is creating a new deputy clerk of DEI—an unprecedented move to ensure Cook County’s policies remain rooted in fairness and inclusion. “Every resident deserves to have their cultural and personal identity acknowledged,” she declared. Unlike Trump, her office will prioritize making every voice heard.
LGBTQ advocates have rallied behind Gordon’s defiance, with Brian Johnson of Equality Illinois stating the obvious: “Queer people are your children, your doctors, your teachers, your pastors, your neighbors.” And they’re not going anywhere, no matter how much the administration tries to erase them.
While Trump’s DEI purge has already resulted in dismissals—like the firing of federal employee Frank Zamora for refusing to remove his pronouns—Cook County is setting a different tone. In an era where the White House is doubling down on discrimination, Gordon’s office is a beacon of resistance.
By next month, Cook County’s DEI measures will be fully integrated, proving that even in Trump’s America, inclusivity still has a stronghold. If this is any sign of what’s to come, the resistance is alive and well—starting at the county clerk’s office.