Jan 10 (Reuters) - Facebook owner Meta Platforms ( META )

and Amazon.com ( AMZN ) are winding down diversity

programs ahead of Republican Donald Trump's return to the U.S.

presidency, amid growing conservative opposition to such

initiatives.

Some of America's biggest businesses have been scaling

back their diversity initiatives, years after pushing for more

inclusive policies in the wake of protests that followed the

police killings of George Floyd and other Black Americans in

2020.

Meta is ending its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)

programs, including those for hiring, training and picking

suppliers, it said in an internal memo to employees on Friday -

the latest in a series of actions cheered by conservatives.

In less than two weeks, Meta has

scrapped its U.S. fact-checking program, elevated prominent

Republican Joel Kaplan to be its chief global affairs officer

and elected Dana White, CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship

(UFC) and close friend of Trump, to its board.

Amazon.com ( AMZN ), in a December memo to employees seen by

Reuters on Friday, said it was "winding down outdated programs

and materials" related to representation and inclusion, aiming

to complete the process by the end of 2024.

Conservative groups have denounced the programs and

threatened to sue companies over them, emboldened by a U.S.

Supreme Court ruling in 2023 that struck down affirmative action

in university admissions decisions.

Just this week, Elon Musk and other Trump allies blamed DEI

programs for hindering the response to raging wildfires in Los

Angeles, without evidence.

"The legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity,

equity and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing,"

Janelle Gale, Vice President of Human Resources at Meta, said in

the memo, which was seen by Reuters and originally reported by

Axios.

Gale cited recent Supreme Court decisions "signaling a

shift" in how U.S. courts will approach DEI programs going

forward.

"The term 'DEI' has also become charged, in part because it

is understood by some as a practice that suggests preferential

treatment of some groups over others," she wrote.

Meta will no longer have a dedicated team focused on DEI.

One employee comment on Gale's memo called it "upsetting to

read".