Ford becomes latest company to reject DEI initiatives — Human Rights Campaign resorts to name-calling after slew of losses



The Ford Motor Company walked back some DEI initiatives following pushback from conservatives. The Human Rights Campaign — America’s largest LGBTQ political lobbying organization — reacted to Ford's new direction by slinging insults after suffering its latest repudiation by a major company.

On Thursday, filmmaker and conservative consumer activist Robby Starbuck shared an internal memo from Ford CEO Jim Farley to employees regarding a pullback of commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

'What we want to do with this campaign is just make workplaces about work again with no divisive political or social issues.'

"For more than a century, Ford has been a pioneer in providing opportunities to people around the world of all races, genders, and backgrounds," the memo began. "Our people are our greatest strength, and the diverse experiences, perspectives, and talents of our team have enabled Ford to create some of the most iconic vehicles in history and afford millions of people the freedom of mobility."

"We are mindful that our employees and customers hold a wide range of beliefs, and the external and legal environment related to political and social issues continues to evolve," Farley said in the memo.

The automaker giant noted that the company has evolved in the past year, and Ford has "taken a fresh look at our policies and practices to ensure they support our values, drive business results, and take into account the current landscape."

Included in the new policy changes, Ford proclaimed that employee resource groups must now focus efforts on "networking, mentorship, personal and professional development, and community service."

Ford Motor Co. stressed that it "does not utilize hiring quotas or tie compensation to the achievement of specific diversity goals."

The carmaker also declared that it will not use quotas for minority dealerships or suppliers.

Farley continued, "Ford remains deeply committed to fostering a safe and inclusive workplace and building a team that leverages diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and thinking styles to craft the best products, services, and experiences for our customers."

"As a global company, we will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day," the memo read.

Of the car company's philanthropic endeavors, Ford noted that it would focus on "areas where we can make the biggest positive difference for the most people, including education for the future of work, entrepreneurship, and essential services, such as our support of and volunteer work with Team Rubicon, the veteran-led group dedicated to disaster recovery."

Ford Motor Company announced that it would no longer participate in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index and various other "best places to work" lists.

The Human Rights Campaign responded by hinting at a boycott targeting Ford and stooped to name-calling against Starbuck.

"Today, Ford ABANDONED its values and commitments to an inclusive workplace, cowering to MAGA weirdo Robby Starbuck," the Human Rights Campaign said. "With the LGBTQ+ community wielding $1.4 TRILLION in spending power and 30% of Gen Z identifying as LGBTQ+, we won’t forget this shortsighted decision and its impact."

Ford had a perfect 100 score on the HRC's Corporate Equity Index in 2023 and declared the automaker to be a "leader in LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion."

The HRC bills its so-called Corporate Equity Index as "the national benchmarking tool on corporate policies, practices, and benefits pertinent to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer employees."

The Human Rights Campaign was described as having a "leading role in Democratic Party politics and left-leaning activism" by InfluenceWatch — an organization that provides "accurate descriptions of all of the various influencers of public policy issues."

Regarding the memo, Ford told USA Today, "The communication to our global employees speaks for itself. We have nothing further to add."

Starbuck declared, "We are winning, and one by one we WILL bring sanity back to corporate America."

"What we want to do with this campaign is just make workplaces about work again with no divisive political or social issues," Starbuck added. "Some on the left may see sponsorship of a pride event as supporting a community but others see children being exposed to sexual content and find it wildly inappropriate for a workplace to sponsor. As a consumer, I can’t in good faith support a company that explicitly funds things that I’m morally opposed to."

Ford is the latest major company to rein back DEI commitments.

As Blaze News previously reported, Harley-Davidson rejected DEI commitments and also said it would no longer participate in the HRC's woke index.

Last month, Tractor Supply declared that it would no longer submit data to the Human Rights Campaign and would remove DEI positions and ditch its carbon emissions goals.

Also in July, farm equipment manufacturer John Deere announced it would no longer sponsor “social or cultural awareness” events and would audit all training materials "to ensure the absence of socially-motivated messages" following a campaign organized by Starbuck.

Starbuck then took aim at exposing DEI commitments at Jack Daniel's and its parent company — Brown-Forman. Last week, Brown-Forman proclaimed that it would no longer participate in the HRC's Corporate Equality Index social credit system and would end "quantitative workforce and supplier diversity ambitions" and ensure company goals are exclusively tied to productivity and not DEI initiatives.

This week, home improvement behemoth Lowe's discontinued some of its diversity, equity, and inclusion commitments and dropped out of surveys for the Human Rights Campaign.

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EXCLUSIVE: Gov. Youngkin Pulls Virginia From Location Consideration In Chinese Deal With Ford

'Virginia is removing itself from any possibilities of the CATL plant being established'

Ford partners with major Chinese company to meet electric vehicle production goals, will reportedly cut up to 8,000 jobs



Ford Motor Co. announced Thursday it has secured enough battery supplies to build electric vehicles at a rate of 600,000 per year by the end of 2023 — and it is relying on a major Chinese company to meet that target.

The Michigan-based car manufacturer has entered into an agreement with Contemporary Amperex Technology, a Chinese battery maker, to produce 2 million EVs per year by 2026.

“Ford’s new electric vehicle lineup has generated huge enthusiasm and demand, and now we are putting the industrial system in place to scale quickly,” Ford CEO Jim Farley said in a statement. "Our Model e team has moved with speed, focus and creativity to secure the battery capacity and raw materials we need to deliver breakthrough EVs for millions of customers.”

Ford has set ambitious targets for electric vehicle production in upcoming years, claiming there is "strong demand" for these products.

In March, the company split into two divisions: Ford Blue, which will build traditional combustion engine automobiles, and Ford Model e, which will solely produce electric vehicles. The company has pledged a $50 billion investment into its electric vehicle business to compete with other EV makers like Tesla. It reportedly is planning to cut as many as 8,000 jobs from Ford Blue as well to boost profits and support the EV business, according to Bloomberg News.

By 2023, Ford Model e intends to build 270,000 Mustang Mach-Es, 150,000 F-150 Lightnings, 150,000 Transit EVs, and 30,000 SUV units.

Ford said that it has secured 100% of the annual battery cell capacity needed to meet these targets by working with "leading battery companies around the globe."

China's Contemporary Amperex Technology, better known as CATL, is the world's largest manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries, controlling more than 35% of market share for electric vehicles, according to Bloomberg. Ford said CATL will provide full LFP battery packs for Mustang Mach-E models in North America beginning next year, as well as F-150 Lightnings in early 2024.

Ford is also using its current partnerships with Korean companies LG Energy Solution and SK ON to meet its late-2023 EV production targets.

Additionally, Ford and CATL announced a separate, non-binding memorandum of understanding to expand their cooperation and supply batteries for Ford's EV markets in China, Europe, and North America.

Ford also announced plans to localize 40 gigawatt hours of annual battery capacity in North America in 2026, and agreements to direct-source battery raw materials. These plans are in addition to previously announced battery plants located in Kentucky and Tennessee.

In September, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) praised Ford for expanding electric vehicle manufacturing in the United States.

“I applaud Ford for their decision to bring their new battery plants to Hardin County, which will provide a much-needed economic boost to the region and create thousands of well-paying Kentucky jobs,” McConnell said at the time. “With Ford’s commitment, we have further solidified our role as a world-class automotive state on the cutting edge of research and development. I look forward to continuing to pursue pro-business policies in Kentucky and nationwide that will allow great American companies like Ford to continue to prosper and grow our economy.”