On Tuesday evening, a federal government employee was shocked to find a watchlist that included the names, photos and work history of 57 mostly Black employees from a number of healthcare agencies. Many of the people listed have worked in health equity roles. “It’s just really scary,” said the federal worker, who works in a different industry and asked to remain anonymous out of fear that she may end up on a similar list. “I think it’s a way to continue to sow that fear, that angst, in the culture at a lot of these agencies.”
As someone who was placed on administrative leave in January for previously working in a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) role, she sees the watchlist as an attempt to purge government employees who wanted to “make the government work better and now that’s suddenly demonized”. The list, which was published online, has the potential to harm people’s careers, she said, jeopardize their safety and take a psychological toll on them.
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