Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, has announced it will no longer consider race and gender policies when awarding supplier contracts after coming under pressure from conservative activist Robby Starbuck.
The company is rolling back several diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives after criticism that they would harm certain groups.
As part of the changes, Walmart is winding down the Center for Racial Equity, a nonprofit that received $100 million in funding from the retailer in 2020. The company will also end some workforce racial equity training and review support for Pride events. , and withdrawing from the rankings of the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT advocacy group.
In addition, Walmart stated that it would monitor online sellers for sexual or transgender products marketed to children and remove items deemed inappropriate.
The pledges come after Robby Starbuck, a conservative “anti-woke” activist and former music video director, threatened to mobilize his 700,000 followers on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to boycott Walmart ahead of Black Friday if changes were not made . In a post on
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, an advisor to President-elect Donald Trump, who has been an outspoken critic of DEI policies, amplified the news by reposting an article about Walmart’s decision, saying, “The tide has turned.”
Walmart, which employs 2.1 million people and has a market value of about $740 billion, claimed it was already reviewing some of its DEI policies ahead of the talks with Starbuck. The company stated: “We are ready to change together with our employees and customers who represent all of America.”
John Furner, president and CEO of Walmart US, discussed the policy changes during an interview with CBS News, saying, “Like many companies in the United States, we have been and continue to be on a journey. And what we try to do is make sure that every customer, every employee, feels welcome to shop here and feels like they belong.”
In October, Walmart said it sourced more than $13 billion in goods and services last fiscal year from a variety of suppliers, including companies owned or operated by veterans, people with disabilities, members of the LGBT community, women and colored people. The retailer’s latest culture and diversity report shows that people of color represent approximately 51% of the total U.S. workforce, with 59% of new hires being people of color and 49% being women.
The company’s decision has sparked mixed reactions. While conservative activists like Starbuck have applauded the move toward “corporate neutrality,” others have criticized Walmart for potentially undermining its diversity and inclusion efforts. Users of Bluesky, a social media platform that competes with X, described Walmart as “disgusting” and “cowards” after the announcement.
Walmart now faces the challenge of balancing the demands of different stakeholder groups as it risks losing customers who support DEI initiatives while trying to appease those who oppose them.