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Kentucky Democrat says she feels bad about being White while defending DEI

During a meeting of the Interim Joint Committee on Education, Kentucky lawmaker Rep. Sarah Stalker, D-Louisville, called DEI in education "an incredible opportunity" for White students to see their privilege.

A Kentucky Democrat went viral this week after admitting she felt guilty about her skin color in a speech defending diversity, equity and inclusion programs in public schools.

"I'm going to be honest," state Rep. Sarah Stalker said during a meeting of the Kentucky General Assembly's Interim Joint Committee on Education Tuesday. "I don't feel good about being White every day, for a lot of reasons."

Stalker was responding to comments from Republican state Sen. Lindsey Tichenor, R-Smithfield, who presented a draft of a bill to end DEI programs in K-12 schools in Kentucky, according to the Kentucky Lantern.

In her remarks, Stalker said being White was a "point of privilege" that gives her opportunities that many of her colleagues, friends, family members and community don't get to experience. She said removing DEI programs from schools would deny White students the "opportunity" to expose them to their own "privilege."

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Rep. Sarah Stalker defended DEI in Kentucky's public schools during a committee hearing on Tuesday. (Arden S. Barnes/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)

"If I was a?White man, I would be functioning from a point of even greater privilege," she continued. "I?think we're missing an opportunity. When kids have a moment to reflect about how the color of their skin does and?does not allow them to move through the world — running to them and trying to?stifle that and trying to say you shouldn't feel bad, so, we don't ever want to expose you to?something that is going to make you have to pause and have maybe some internal feelings — it's a missed opportunity for?some really good dialogue."

Stalker denied DEI efforts are about "making people feel bad about being White," instead arguing they are about recognizing the "historical privilege that White people have always had in this country," which she said still exists today.

She pointed to the diversity within the state's largest school district — Jefferson County Public Schools — which she said represented 145 languages spoken and where 63% of students qualified for free and reduced lunches. She argued DEI is really about "including everyone," not excluding White people.

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A Jefferson County Public Schools nutritional assistant displays a sign indicating free meals to-go at Crums Lane Elementary School in Louisville, Kentucky, on Jan. 21, 2022. (Jon Cherry/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

"What the efforts of DEI are trying to do within a school setting now is to pull in other students," Stalker continued. "Their stories are?relative. Their culture, their history, those things are important to?see reflective in the reading material. And if we don't allow those?things to come into our textbooks and to come into our conversations in the classroom in a constructive way,?then we are simply just trying to whitewash things and I find that to be incredibly problematic."

Stalker's comments drew attention online — and a strong reaction from Elon Musk.

"What an evil woman," Musk posted on X. His comment drew more than 1 million views in less than 24 hours.

Tichenor, the anti-DEI bill's sponsor, said the legislation would be narrowly tailored and would not "affect instruction on the historical oppression of a particular group of people," according to the Kentucky Lantern.

Tichenor also criticized Jefferson and Fayette counties for declining to comply with Trump administration directives to end DEI programs in schools. She argued that, despite receiving funding under the Biden administration, those programs have not improved minority students’ academic outcomes.

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Protesters in Michigan rally against President Donald Trump’s anti-DEI policies. (Getty Images/Dominic Gwinn)

"DEI reinforces division rather than unity, and encourages students, teachers and staff to see each other through the lens of identity and creating groupthink instead of creating independent thinkers," Tichenor said.

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Stalker did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.