Johns Hopkins chief diversity officer Sherita Golden steps down two months after sending email saying anyone white, Christian and male is 'privileged': Prestigious school also erased women by referring to them as 'non-men'

The chief diversity officer at John Hopkins Medicine has resigned following backlash over an email that claimed anyone who is white, Christian and male is 'privileged.'

Dr. Sherita Golden stepped down from her role as vice president and chief diversity officer as of Tuesday, according to an announcement by Dean Theodore DeWeese and Executive Vice President Kevin Sowers provided to Fox News Digital.

However, she will continue to teach hold the position of Hugh P. McCormick Family Professor of Endocrinology and Metabolism.

John Hopkin Medicine's dean and president were forced to apologize in January after Golden sent a letter labeling all white people, Christians, men and English-speakers as 'privileged' as part of the 'monthly diversity digest.'

The controversy came after the school faced backlash last year for erasing the word 'women' from a 'inclusive language guide.' The guide defined a 'lesbian' as 'a non-man attracted to non-men.' Conversely, gay men were still referred to as 'men' by the guide.

The entire department Neira works in is overseen by Sherita Hill Golden, M.D. (pictured)  who has the label of Chief Diversity Officer

The letter was sent to staff by Dr. Sherita Hill Golden for the 'monthly diversity digest' 

Golden denied having anything to do with the language glossary, but was ultimately the boss of Johns Hopkins diversity efforts when it was published. 

In their Thursday statement, the Maryland school said: 'We are writing to share the news that after a great deal of reflection, Dr. Sherita Golden has decided to step down from her role as vice president and chief diversity officer for Johns Hopkins Medicine. 

'She has been a valuable member of the Johns Hopkins Medicine leadership team, and, like many of you, we wanted her to stay in her role, but we respect her decision.'

The school added that it will create a search committee to conduct a national search for the new chief diversity officer. Until a new chief is selected, chief human resources officer Inez Stewart will oversee the diversity office.

The statement continued: 'As Dr. Golden transitions to her diabetes research as a faculty member, we remain unwavering in our commitment to the principles and values of diversity, inclusion and health equity. We will continue to address health disparities and increase retention and recruitment of diverse talent, all in service of the richly diverse communities we serve.

'This work takes courage, and we are profoundly grateful to Dr. Golden for her grace under pressure, her poise in the face of adversity, and her dedication to the mission and work of ODIHE (Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Health Equity).'

In the initial inflammatory email Dr. Golden explained that 'privilege' is the 'diversity word of the month'.

To highlight who the phrase applies to, she offered a list. It reads: 'Privilege is characteristically invisible to people who have it.

'White people, able-bodied people, heterosexuals, cisgender people, males Christians, middle or owning class people, middle-aged people and English-speaking people,' all fit the bill, according to Golden.

Johns Hopkins University had been known for its rigorous academics, commitment to research and innovation, and its contributions to advancing knowledge and solving complex problems in a wide range of fields

Johns Hopkins University last year excluded the word 'women' in the definition of 'lesbian' within its newly created inclusive language guide

'People in dominant groups often believe they have earned the privileges they enjoy or that everyone could have access to these privileges if only they worked to earn them.

'In fact, privileges are unearned and are granted to people in the dominant groups whether they want those privileges or not, and regardless of their stated intent.'

Among those to condemn the remarks was Elon Musk, who tweeted: 'This must end!'

After the post went viral on Twitter, Golden issued an apology to staff.

'The newsletter included a definition of the word privilege which, upon reflection, I deeply regret. The intent of the newsletter is to inform and support an inclusive community at Hopkins, but the language of this definition clearly did not meet that goal.

'In fact, because it was overly simplistic and poorly worded, it had the opposite effect.'

'I retract and disavow the definition I shared and I am sorry.'

In a statement to DailyMail.com, a Johns Hopkins Medicine spokesperson said: 'The January edition of the monthly newsletter from the Johns Hopkins Medicine Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Health Equity used language that contradicts the values of Johns Hopkins as an institution.

'Dr. Sherita Golden, Johns Hopkins Medicine's Chief Diversity Officer, has sincerely acknowledged this mistake and retracted the language used in the message.'