Companies are ripping off their diversity, equity, and inclusion masks and reaffirming the driving force behind their company-wide policies: profits above all.
Following the George Floyd protests in the summer of 2020, many companies ramped up their diversity efforts in response to a majority of U.S. voices (i.e., consumers) expressing a desire for representation.
However, as some experts speculated, company changes to workplace environments appear to have been more of a temporary effort to appease disgruntled pocketbooks.
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With felon-elect Donald Trump preparing to take the White House, some companies are leaning into Trump’s “anti-woke” and anti-DEI rhetoric and rolling back programs to make their workplaces more inclusive.
Additionally, following the Supreme Court’s June 2023 decision to strike down affirmative action in colleges, companies seemingly moved away from their diversity efforts in an apparent fear of legal repercussions.
Here are some of the companies who have dropped their DEI policies in the past year.
Walmart
Walmart—a company who employs over 2 million people worldwide—announced in November that it would end its DEI initiative.
The retail giant also said it would not renew the Center for Racial Equity, a program launched by Walmart’s chief executive Doug McMillon after the Floyd protests. At the time, the program promised to give out $100 million in grants over five years that would help to address systemic racism.
McMillon’s 2020 promises included making changes in Walmart that “actively shape our culture to be more inclusive.”
As for its recent rollbacks, Walmart will stop sharing data with the Humans Right Campaign, an advocacy group that reports on LGBTQ+ initiatives across workplaces. The company will also halt the sale of certain LGBTQ+ items on their website and will terminate the use of words such as Latinx and DEI in official communications.
“We’ve been on a journey and know we aren’t perfect, but every decision comes from a place of wanting to foster a sense of belonging, to open doors to opportunities for all our associates, customers and suppliers, and to be a Walmart for everyone,” the company said in a statement.
“This is Walmart preparing for a Trump presidency and Justice Department,” Amber Madison, co-founder of DEI consultancy Peoplism, told The New York Times. “If Walmart’s assessment of the Trump administration is that it will protect his friends and go after its enemies, this is Walmart showing they’re a friend.”
Ford
In August, Ford CEO Jim Farley said in an email to employees that they were opting out of sharing information with the Humans Right Campaign.
“We are mindful that our employees and customers hold a wide range of beliefs,” Farley wrote. “The external and legal environment related to political and social issues continues to evolve.”
Popular right-wing influencer Robby Starbuck took credit for this change—as well as Walmart’s change—and claimed that the company made the cuts after Starbuck shared he was investigating their policies.
However, companies catering to conservative blowback appears to paint a larger picture of the cultural shift happening as the U.S. prepares for a second Trump presidency.
Responding to Ford’s decision at the time, Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement, “Ford Motor Company’s shortsighted decisions will have long-term consequences.”
“Ford Motor Company is abandoning its financial duty to recruit and keep top talent from across the full talent pool. In making their purchasing decisions, consumers should take note that Ford Motor Company has abandoned its commitment to our communities,” she said.
Lowe’s
In the same month as Ford, Lowe’s also detached itself from the Human Rights Campaign, opting out of sharing data with the advocacy program.
The company said in an internal memo shared with the Associated Press that they began “reviewing” their programs following the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action. And the company Lowe’s decided to combine its resource groups—which represented “diverse sections of our associate population”—into one umbrella group, according to the memo.
Lowe’s also decided to end any sponsorship with programs outside of its business market and to no longer participate in festivals or parades.
“We may make additional changes over time,” the memo read. “What will not change, though, is our commitment to our people.”
Toyota
In October, Toyota announced in a memo obtained by Bloomberg that the car company would “narrow our community activities to align with STEM education and workforce readiness.”
Following suit with the other companies opting out of DEI initiatives, Toyota also decided to stop sharing data with the Human Rights Campaign.
The car company was another one of Starbuck’s alleged projects, which the activist also took credit for following Toyota’s announcement.
However, a spokesperson for the company said that Starbucks’ impact on the company was “negligible.”
Tractor Supply
In June, Tractor Supply cut ties with diversity and climate change efforts after receiving conservative backlash.
The Tennessee-based company also opted out of submitting data to the Human Rights Campaign, and chose to no longer participate in events—such as Pride—that don’t directly pertain to the company’s business.
Per the Associated Press, Tractor Supply said it would be eliminating DEI roles and goals but did not specify what that would entail.
The company’s decision follows a rain of backlash from online conservatives, to which Tractor Supply responded that they “heard from customers that [they had] disappointed them” and took the “feedback to heart.”
Stanley Black & Decker
In September, the power-tool manufacturer quietly distanced itself from DEI efforts by removing any references to diversity or equality from their website.
While the company once had a rich online footprint of DEI support and references to funding for equity and racial justice, those were wiped or met with a broken-link error on the Stanley Black & Decker website, according to Daily Mail, a right-wing British tabloid.
The tool company faced backlash for reportedly spending $280,000 on lobbying for passage of the Equality Act, as well as donating about $10.5 million to “racial equity” organizations as part of a “racial equity roadmap.”
The list continues
Unfortunately, the list of companies who have backtracked their inclusion efforts continues to grow.
As right-wing ideologues and the Supreme Court take aim at race-based diversity programs, companies are looking out for what matters most to them—their bottom line.
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