Conservatives reportedly reacted negatively on social media when they discovered that Chick-Fil-A’s corporate office is now promoting a number of diversity initiatives, a revelation that came as brands such as Bud Light and Target face criticism for embracing enlightened ideology.
Social media users noticed that Chick-fil-A appointed Erick Reynolds as vice president of diversity, equality, and inclusion two years ago.
Chick-fil-A has a long history of being a company governed on the basis of conservative and Christian ideals.
However, on a section of its website dedicated to diversity and inclusion (DEI), Chick-fil-A prominently promotes a variety of diversity initiatives targeted only at women and people of color.
This DEI section first appeared in the days following sales and market capitalization setbacks for Target and Bud Light.
Chick-fil-A’s employment nondiscrimination policy also covers sexual orientation, gender identity, and “gender expression” in addition to race, sex, religion, and veteran status.
The ESG and DEI movements’ detractors claim that these ideologies focus on political and social issues, such as reducing carbon emissions or diversifying business leadership, in a way that interferes with profitability and leverages corporate power to further leftist goals.
Both publicly traded companies, Anheuser-Busch and Target, have witnessed a sharp decline in the value of their shares as a result of the boycott efforts.
Four years ago, Chick-fil-A faced backlash after its charity foundation stopped giving to many organisations that it deemed to be “anti-LGBTQ groups,” including the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Salvation Army.
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