Local governments admit to keeping DEI alive in red South Carolina
August 5, 2026
South Carolinians might be surprised to learn their taxes aren’t just going to roads and schools, but also to funding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the local level.
Accuracy in Media’s undercover journalist caught several local government employees discussing their DEI efforts.
“My title is still the same. All of the work is still the same. Still explicitly call things what they are,” said City of Spartanburg Strategic Partnerships and Opportunities Manager Marilyn Nguyen on AIM’s hidden camera.
However, she said the city is preparing to shift its language in response to potential laws against DEI.
“It would be the same exact work, we would just be, you know, working with language around like access and opportunity versus inclusion,” she explained. “We would be renaming all of it so that we would, you know, continue to be able to do the same thing.”
It’s not just one employee pushing this woke agenda for Spartanburg. Assistant City Manager said on AIM’s hidden camera, “One of the reasons I moved here was Spartanburg was doing DEI stuff before it was trendy or popular. Like it’s something we believe in, it’s in our core and we keep it.”
Over in Greenville, Volunteer Coordinator Kamara Sitton confirmed to AIM’s undercover journalist that there is a DEI office.
“We do have one, we have a person,” she said.
She advised seeking out any DEI opportunities through the community engagement office.
In the coastal city of Myrtle Beach, an unnamed employee confirmed the presence of a DEI representative for employees. She said community based DEI efforts are done through the city’s Human Rights Commission.
AIM investigated several local governments in neighboring North Carolina, which sparked a state legislature probe. Lawmakers overrode Democratic Governor Josh Stein’s veto to pass several anti-DEI measures, targeting the destructive ideology in public schools, higher education, and local government.
It’s time for South Carolina to pass its own DEI bans in government and public institutions.
A bill was introduced last year in the South Carolina State House to put an end to DEI across government. It passed in the general assembly but didn’t make it to the Senate floor before the legislative session adjourned.
South Carolina must put an end to DEI, otherwise local governments will take the opportunity to keep promoting the divisive ideology.
Visit SaveCarolinaCities.com to send one convenient message to the relevant officials. Let them know taxpayers won’t stand to see their hard earned money go towards woke DEI efforts.