- Emily B. Brown lost nearly $63,000 in contract work for an external federal aid agency.
- Brown specializes in gender equality and social inclusion. This is an initiative that Trump is eradicating.
- She is part of Trump's novel ripple effect of federal spending and crackdowns on Day.
Emily B. Brown She was a self-employed consultant long enough to know that her cash flow is often feasts and hunger. What she couldn't prepare was the demolition of the federal agency that funded much of her work.
In February she lost everything contract Revenues for 2025 – Ripple effects that will freeze President Donald Trump's government and reduce foreign aid in the United States.
Because she owns her business, Brown is not eligible for unemployment benefits. She had to pay two part-time jobs at a retail store and as a scuba diving instructor, basic expenses like rent.
“I have to support myself,” said Brown, who lives in Key West, Florida. “I haven't worked in any industry other than politics and foreign aid since I was 21.”
Brown is one of thousands of American workers from homes and abroad whose lives have been ruined by Trump's 90-day freeze on foreign aid, the termination of 83% of the US International Development Agency, and the eruption of nearly 10,000 staff of USAID, Trump's 90-day freeze.
Trump and Elon Musk's White House Doge offices have argued that the move will put “American interests” first and reduce wasteful spending, but opponents of the administration's actions have warned that the US has given China global impact and already caused preventable deaths abroad.
“President Trump serves the American people, not the government contractor who wants to benefit from taxpayers through other programs that don't match America's first agenda,” White House assistant reporter Anna Kelly told Business Insider in a statement. “He is implementing policies that will drive private sector growth, raise small and medium-sized businesses and level the arenas of American companies on the world stage.”
The administration and Doge are facing lawsuits challenging the shutdown of USAID and lawsuits challenging efforts to reduce the federal workforce. The fate of US international development is in court, but Brown's career path is in scope.
Dei's work is dry
Brown, 39, has been involved in international development for over a decade and specializes in gender equality and social inclusion.
She lined up three contracts in 2025, totaling around $63,000, funded by USAID and Millenium Challenge Corporation.
Work has ceased since late January, according to a document reviewed by Business Insider.
Brown shared an email indicating that the agreement with the USAID-funded program has ended as of February 13th. It was an anti-corruption program aimed at countering illegal money laundering in industries such as shipping ports and real estate. Brown was assigned to Albania. Albania is about to enter the European Union by 2030. She was planning to travel to Albania and conduct gender analysis to identify the people who were most vulnerable to corruption and exploitation when she received an order to halt her job.
Brown has not been paid for work completed in January and has shared an invoice showing the monthly payments of nearly $3,700 by USAID partner Millenium Challenge Corporation.
The email indicates that two other contracts with Brown's Millennium Challenge Corporation are pending. Brown intended to study the barriers faced by girls, women, people with disabilities and others facing access to secondary education in Timor Reste and Gambia. This study will help the MCC plan potential investments in these countries.
“My expertise lies in gender equality and social inclusion,” Brown said. “What that means with international development programming is to ensure that US-funded programs reach the most necessary risks and risks. It is generally women, children, people with disabilities.”
Brown said the Biden administration's focus on equity has created many opportunities for her consulting services. But after Trump won the election, she began to see the job decline. Even if MCC's investments move forward, Brown said she worries that her expertise will no longer be needed as the Trump administration eradicates diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the federal government.
“At the end of 2024, the organization was beginning to be a little more cautious,” Brown said. “Then I will be much more cautious about how I invest my funds into consultants with gender and inclusion expertise after the election.”
Brown said a few weeks after her contract was exhausted and darkened. In Key West, there aren't many workers like her who rely on the federal government, so few people understand the sadness she feels. She also feels scared of the future as Trump and Doge target civil society organisations that don't align with their agenda. She described it as “authoritarian.”
“It wasn't like I went out on that diving boat at least a week or twice in the sun and the water and started feeling a little emotionally and physically,” Brown said. “I'm still choking on my free days.”
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