WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Independent Women Features, the grassroots storytelling and original journalism arm of Independent Women, releases the trailer for its newest documentary “Qualifications, Not Quotas,” featuring Rashid Ellis, a U.S. Secret Service (USSS) agent who is bravely taking a stand against alleged sex-based discrimination in the agency. 

Ellis said he was motivated to speak out after the attempted assassination on President Donald Trump’s life on July 13, 2024, in Butler, PA, which was an enormous and unacceptable security failure. 

“My initial thoughts when seeing the Butler assassination attempt was dread,” Ellis told IW Features. “I had knots in my stomach watching it because we had known for years that this was coming.”

Questions about the Secret Service’s readiness that day can be tied back in part to counterproductive policies implemented by Secret Service leadership under the  Biden-Harris administration, including an arbitrary goal of making sure 30% of the agency’s agents are female by 2030.

Ellis experienced firsthand the consequences of this agenda directly when he was unfairly passed over for a promotion in favor of someone less qualified. He told IW Features he believes the Secret Service’s arbitrary DEI quotas played a role in that.

However, Ellis made it clear “this isn’t just about me.” Ellis believes the failure-ridden Secret Service needs to refocus on protecting people, not DEI. and “restore confidence that our protectees have in our organization.”

On September 9, 2024, Independent Women’s Forum joined Mountain States Legal Foundation’s investigation into the USSS’ use of “diversity, equity, and inclusion” policies for hiring, retention, and promotion. 

Watch Rashid’s trailer HERE

Qualifications, Not Quotas

Rashid Ellis said: “I’ve proudly worked for the Secret Service for 13 years and have repeatedly put my life on the line to advance this agency’s mission and secure the safety of our protectees. Unfortunately, over the past few years I have watched this agency’s leadership abandon this critical mission in favor of ideological goals. The relentless push by Secret Service leadership to meet diversity quotas in particular has compromised our ability to meet our protectees’ needs. This agenda has contributed to devastating security failures, including the July 13 assassination attempt of President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. I know this firsthand because I am one of many Secret Service agents who was wrongly sidelined by agency leadership because I did not meet their sex-based diversity requirements. Though I welcome the change of leadership at the top of the agency and the reforms I hope they will prioritize, I worry that it will take years to rectify the damage that discriminatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies have caused. The Secret Service’s role is critical, and if we do not clean out the rot that has embedded itself in this agency, our people — and our protectees — will pay the price.”

Beth Parlato, senior legal adviser at Independent Women, said: “The Secret Service’s primary responsibility is protecting people, and the best and most qualified should be hired, regardless of their sex. Yet, the Secret Service is prioritizing its DEI agenda over merit with their policy to have a 30% female quota. This is dangerous and unlawful. In our country, pursuant to the 14th Amendment, it is illegal for the government to discriminate on the basis of sex. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits employers from discriminating on the basis of sex. Arbitrary DEI quotas have no place in law enforcement.”

Kaylee McGhee White, editor-in-chief of IW Features, said: “The Secret Service is one of many federal agencies whose work has been hampered by divisive and counterproductive diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. Given the Secret Service’s critical work, this agenda has had particularly visible consequences. The Secret Service’s protectees should not be worried about whether the agency is able to adequately prepare for and respond to threats due to unfair hiring and promotion standards. Unfortunately, as Rashid Ellis has confirmed, that is exactly what has happened.”

Direct media inquiries and booking requests to [email protected]

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