The chief DEI officer at NASA‘s jet propulsion lab was fired after her title was changed to hide her from Donald Trump‘s war on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Trump and ‘First Buddy’ Elon Musk have been happy warriors against DEI, working to rid the federal government of what they call unfair practices.
Neela Rajendra had run the lab’s central diversity office, at one point arguing that having deadlines for work projects undermine inclusion, according to The Washington Free Beacon.
However, amid a series of 900 job cuts due to budgeting issues made in 2024, the diversity office was cut but Rajendra was mysteriously kept on.
She’d had all references to DEI washed from from her title but reportedly kept many of the same job duties as ‘head of employee success.’
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In early March, Rajendra was still in charge of the lab’s ‘Black Excellence Strategic Team.’
However, earlier this week in response to reports she was being protected from Trump administration DEI cuts, the lab parted ways with Rajendra.
‘Neela Rajendra is no longer working at [the Jet Propulsion Laboratory]. We are incredibly grateful for the lasting impact she made to our organization. We wish her the very best,’ lab director Laurie Leshin wrote in an all-staff email on Thursday.
Hellbound and Down 