The COA's New DEI Lawfare Initiative

 The Connecticut Office of the Arts (COA) has sent an email dated Julyy 22 2026 announcing a "Partnership Announcement". The body of the email announcement is as follows:

"COA x EANE

COA is thrilled to announce a partnership with the Employers Association of the NorthEast (EANE). Through this partnership COA constituents can access multiple types of Human Resources benefits which we hope will make your work easier.



Through COA's partnership with the Employers Association of the NorthEast (EANE), you now have access to valuable HR resources, including select HR training, discounted HR services, and unlimited support from certified HR professionals through EANE's HR Hotline service.

The Human Resource Hotline is free to COA users. All you have to do is to call 877.662.6444 and ask to be connected to the HR Hotline. Let the HR Hotline advisor know you're calling through the CT Office of the Arts and briefly describe your HR question or situation. There is much more information below, including a video that describes the process. We will be hosting a lunchtime webinar on Thursday September 10^th at noon so that you can learn more – mark your calendars for the upcoming registration announcement.

Who is EANE? 

The Employers Association of the NorthEast (EANE) is a member-based organization that has helped employers across New England navigate workplace and HR challenges for more than 100 years. Today, more than 1,000 organizations rely on EANE for HR support, training, consulting, and on-demand resources. EANE serves as an extension of its members' teams, providing trusted guidance and expertise to help organizations make informed decisions and build stronger workplaces."

I had never heard of EANE before and I sure as hell don't trust the COA any further than I can spit.

I looked up EANE to simply poke a bit at the integrity of the organization. First they are located in Agawam, Massachusetts which means that art funding intended for the benefit of CT artists was being (yet again) outsourced out-of State. And the bureaucratic function that is being moved out-of-State are Human Resource services regarding the employment or management of CT artists, administrators, and other art related personnel.

After even a cursory poke at reseaching what EANE provides aside from some perfunctory services, Gemini (Google's AI) returned this disturbing feature of doing business with EANE:

"3. Legal and Compliance Shielding

Amid shifting federal enforcement, EANE educates companies on how to navigate the legality of DEIB initiatives. For example, through legal educational pipelines like the RI SHRM Employment Law Summit, EANE addresses how employers can protect internal programs from anti-DEI scrutiny and evolving Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) standards. [1, 2]"

In other words, Taxpayer money (Federal and State) intended for the promotion of Art in CT are being used to fund a lawfare resistance to the policies of the current elected US administration.

Furthermore by using an Human Resources outsourced firm, The CT Office of Human Rights and Opportunities will have no juristiction to remediate legitimate discriminatory practices at the Connecticut Office of the Arts. This disenfranchises not only the CT Arts community from legal civil rights protections, it creates a money laundering scheme on the part partisan DEI advocates to insulate the State bureaucrats from legal accountability regarding Human Resources, Human Resource policy development, and due process for artists and others who are harmed by this illegal, taxpayer funded lawfare against the democratically elected government policies of this administration.