DEI Groundhog Day

Groundhog, meet Trumphog

The Trump administration (sic) isn’t just attacking Diversity, Equity, and Inclusiveness (DEI) programs in the federal government, they’re going after corporate America’s DEI programs too.

Meta, Walmart, McDonald’s, and other companies obeyed in advance and shut down their DEI programs after Trump was elected (sic) but before he took office.

The companies goosestepping in line include Target, Amazon, Boeing, Molson Coors, Lowes, Ford, Jack Daniels, Harley Davidson, and John Deere sent its DEI program a Dear John letter.

But other companies are resisting despite pressure from Trump and pro-Trump groups, like the National Center for Public Policy Research which is sending proposals (demands) to the board of directors of companies like Apple, Delta, Costco, and Cisco. JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, and Goldman Sachs are resisting as well, citing DEI as one reason for their success.

The weaker and more cowardly corporations aren’t just changing their hiring practices but also dropping outreach programs that could raise the ire of Donald Trump.

John Deere said it would no longer support “cultural awareness” events like Pride parades and would audit company documents to remove “socially-motivated messages.”

Harley-Davidson said it would no longer participate in human rights campaign (HRC) surveys or partner with sponsors that do not focus on its “loyal riding community.”

Jack Daniels said it would stop participating in the HRC index, citing the shifting “legal and external landscape,” basically admitting it’s because of Donald Trump. Ford and Lowes have said basically the same thing, citing legal, political, and social issues. Lowes said it will stop supporting the LGBTQ community.

Coors ran a feminist-themed ad in 2023, caught right-wing backlash, and strongly defended it. They received a 100 ranking from the Human Rights Campaign for its LGBTQ policies. But now they’re caving from MAGA pressure.

Walmart is removing all LGBTQ-themed products from its website.

I think some of these companies never cared about evolving and treating people fairly since many of them cite the “shifting landscape.” I believe these corporations only installed DEI programs and progressive campaigns not because they were trying to do the right thing, but only to do what they believed was best for business. Now, they’re happily going with Trump to take this nation backward.

I remember the backlash and controversy to one of the first commercials to feature diversity and it was a Cheerio’s ad. It featured a married couple, a White woman and a Black man who had a daughter. It was sweet and didn’t mention race. And then more commercials like that came along. It wasn’t that long ago that gay couples started being featured in commercials. These commercials weren’t forcing us to be woke or progressive. They were displaying reality.

I predict within the next two months that we start seeing fewer of these commercials and within a year, they will all be gone. I will notice this.

President Biden issued an executive order on his first day in office on January 20, 2021, for federal agencies to address racial inequities. On Trump’s second first day in office, he rescinded it.

Trump and his all-White cabinet are making the federal government bigoted again, and they’re trying to force the rest of the nation to go along.

Creative note: Laura, one of my proofers, said, “I bet you’re tired of drawing groundhogs.” I replied, “I’m more tired of drawing Trump.”

Drawn in 30 seconds:

Timelapse:

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