Jack Daniels – Photo: Marcel Strauß via Unsplash
Spirits giant Brown-Forman Corp., the makers of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey, is the latest company to cave to right-wing influencers who have targeted companies that embrace diversion, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and offer pro-LGBTQ workplace policies.
Other companies that have bent the knee to right-wing online mobs in recent weeks include Tractor Supply Co., John Deere, and motorcycle giant Harley-Davidson.
Right-wing ringleader Robby Starbuck said in a post on X that Jack Daniel’s had been next on his list of businesses to target, despite having customer bases that are perceived as more culturally conservative.
“Big news: The next company we were set to expose was @JackDaniels_US,” Starbuck wrote. “They must have been tipped off by us going through employee LinkedIn pages. … We’re now forcing multi-billion dollar organizations to change their policies without even posting, just from fear they have of being the next company that we expose. We are winning and one by one we will bring sanity back to corporate America.”
Among the changes being introduced by the Kentucky-based Brown-Forman — detailed in an internal company memo posted by Starbuck — are the end of an initiative, launched in 2019, where 10% of executives’ short-term compensation was tied to progress on DEI goals.
Moving forward, executive and employee bonuses will be tied solely to performance. The company has also scuttled any efforts to diversify suppliers, and will end all “woke” cultural sensitivity or cultural competency trainings.
The company will stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, which measures corporations’ commitment to nondiscrimination in hiring and firing practices, as well as pro-LGBTQ workplace, medical, and family leave policies.
Brown-Forman Corp. received a 100% rating on HRC’s most recent Corporate Equality Index.
Ken Mahony, the CEO of Mahony Asset Management, told The New York Post that companies like Tesla, Home Depot, Wayfair, and Walmart have begun phasing out DEI leadership goals since being threatened with boycotts by conservative activists.
“[Having DEI policies] hurts their image because consumers feel like they’re not putting the best people in place, but rather keeping score,” said Mahoney. “And for this group of consumers, we’re not born and raised this way.”
A survey conducted by Gallup and Bentley University found that only 38% of Americans think businesses should take a public stance on current events or public policy — marking a 10% decline from two years ago.
The only subgroups where a slim majority believe companies should speak out about their political beliefs are LGBTQ adults, Black adults, and Democrats.
Given those findings, it seems more likely other companies will soon shy away from political stances — or even stances that can be perceived as political, such as saying they will not discriminate against LGBTQ employees.
Mere association with, or proximity to, the LGBTQ community has become enough for conservative activists to threaten large-scale boycotts of companies that don’t actively discriminate against LGBTQ people in hiring or firing or those that offer LGBTQ-friendly benefit packages.
Last year, Bud Light was subjected to a boycott after partnering with transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney for a promotional ad, losing billions in sales as result.
Similarly, Target lost $10 billion in market valuation after customers boycotted the company for offering Pride-themed merchandise, including some items for children.
In response, a conservative legal group filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming that the boycott was evidence that the company, by embracing LGBTQ causes, is alienating business and has failed to act in the best interests of its shareholders.
