it is Warning shot It has been ignored, but now it is causing huge damage to big business. Following last year's Supreme Court decision on affirmative action in higher education, 13 Republican state attorneys general filed a lawsuit against the Supreme Court. letter Fortune 100 companies have questioned similar corporate policies, and many now regret that they should have paid more attention.
In the past few months, conservative activist Robbie Starbuck Social Media Campaign He wreaked havoc on major corporations, as they began to cave to his demands before he could be targeted. The result? Damaged market capitalization, damaged reputations, and anger and frustration from consumers and activists on both the left and the right. Welcome to our latest manifestation. Post-Bud Light era All companies target.
Starbucks' campaign, and the attorney general's investigation that preceded it, are part of a growing right-wing backlash against corporate America in the wake of the George Floyd killings. Embrace Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices are just one area where companies are realizing the importance. Hard to avoid Political pressures in today's stakeholder economy: what public relations professionals need to know to help their companies navigate the increasingly fierce culture wars of our tribal age.
Summer DEI got ugly
The attack is being led by conservative activists. Robbie StarbuckHe launched a campaign against companies' DEI initiatives, quietly leading several major companies to back away. Harley DavidsonUsing their social media clout, they accused the company of deviating from blue-collar values. Harley-Davidson caved and scaled back its diversity program. John DeereAgriculture giant Starbucks' campaign to represent rural America garnered millions of views, leading the company to backtrack on its DEI efforts. Molson Coors, Fordand Lowe's To avoid Starbucks' attacks, the company proactively scaled back its diversity efforts.
These are not isolated incidents. Weak signalWhat was once occasional criticism from conservatives has now turned into a full-blown backlash. For example, Tractor Supply initially adopted DEI as part of a broader modernization strategy, but Reduced efforts After being targeted by Starbucks' campaign, the company backed away. The reason for the backing away was due to external pressure, not internal concerns about the effectiveness of DEI. Social media usageThis strategy of slowly releasing moderate amounts of content over time and continuing to ramp up the pressure has been incredibly effective, and I fear that companies of all sectors will pay a heavy price if they continue down the DEI path.
Companies’ Complicated Embrace of DEI
Companies have turned to DEI as a response to fundamental cultural change. The killing of George Floyd galvanized a movement for racial justice, and companies have been driven by both a moral imperative and a strategic necessity to incorporate DEI into their operations. Harley-Davidson, NikeJohn Deere is one of the companies most proactively promoting these efforts, aligning its brand with social progress and winning public acclaim in the process.
What many of these organizations failed to foresee was the emergence of a powerful counterforce. On the surface, DEI appeared apolitical and focused on long-overdue equity, inclusion, and representation. But to conservative critics like Robbie Starbuck, these efforts represented a broader ideological shift that undermined corporate neutrality. Companies that adopted DEI found themselves vulnerable to accusations of aligning too deeply with progressive politics and exposed to oppositional pressure campaigns that could be extremely damaging to their reputations and business models.
As previously pointed outDEI efforts are too often shaped and driven by broader progressive agendas that are not necessarily inclusive themselves. Moreover, for many companies, the adoption of DEI has been more rhetoric than results, Little real progress With the goal of promoting underrepresented people within the company, especially into senior management positions, the company finds itself caught between disgruntled progressives and angry conservatives.
In politics, every action has an unequal and opposite reaction.
Starbucks' strategy reveals a deeper truth about today's political dynamics. Having quickly come to be viewed as a corporate best practice, DEI is now viewed by many on the right as synonymous with “woke,” a label that carries great risk in today's polarized environment. What some companies initially saw as a distant concern has turned into a high-pressure reputational crisis, with many prominent libertarian and conservative voices in the business world now pressuring companies to step up. Embrace alternatives: Merit, Excellence and Intelligence (MEI).
This new reality has significant legal implications, leading to an increase in lawsuits alleging reverse discrimination and politicians pursuing legislative and executive action. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said:Stopping the WOKE ActIn 2022, a bill was passed that would “restrict how topics related to race and gender are taught in schools and the workplace.” In 2023, expansion These efforts were thwarted by defunding DEI programs in higher education, labeling them as political indoctrination. His actions set a precedent for other Republican governors to follow. Texas, North Dakotaand North Carolina Promote similar policies.
In many ways, DEI has become a proxy for a larger ideological battle, and companies are increasingly caught in the middle of it. As the Starbucks campaign gains momentum, companies that once felt pressure from the left to do more on various social issues are now feeling similar pressure from the right. And not all companies understand how we got to this point, or what it means as our culture wars continue.
Overcoming tribal divisions
As the cases of Harley-Davidson, John Deere, and Tractor Supply show, the decision to retreat from DEI initiatives is not necessarily about rejecting diversity per se, but about managing the complex realities of political and reputational risk. Even companies like Nike, well known as staunch supporters of progressive social movements, have softened their public messaging in recent months.
The DEI backlash we’re witnessing today is a reflection of a deeper societal divide currently playing out across corporate America. Public relations professionals need to understand that this battle isn’t just about DEI, it’s about the role that activists and politicians on both sides of the divide expect corporations to play in shaping the cultural narrative.
In this new era, companies must navigate an ever-changing environment where political and cultural loyalties can determine whether they succeed or fail. For those involved in government relations and public policy, staying on top of this is key. Tribal Dynamics It will be crucial in helping organizations anticipate and manage the next wave of backlash, or hopefully avoid it altogether.
Jeff Berkowitz is founder and CEO of Delve, a competitive intelligence and risk advisory firm.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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