For years already, American corporations have been pressured by pro-LGBT activists to join in their ideology.

The promise is good publicity in that community if they do, negative publicity if they don’t.

And that word often has come through the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Quality Index, which rates companies by their submission to that agenda.

The agenda was stepped in up the last few years with the “diversity, equity, inclusion” agenda with which many companies were confronted, a move that in recent weeks and months has been fading as companies back away from the extremism it entails.

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Among the companies that have been turning away are Tractor Supply, John Deer, Harley Davidson and Lowes.

Now Ford has not only joined that group, it has dropped a bombshell on DEI promoters and LGBT activists: It no longer will participate in HRC’s annual index.

According to a report from Fox Business, “anti-woke activist and filmmaker Robby Starbuck, who has been leading a campaign exposing major corporations’ woke policies, reported on X on Wednesday that he was in the middle of an investigation of Ford when the company sent him documentation indicating that it had made some changes.”

The letter Starbucks posted, from Ford CEO Jim Farley, included Farley’s comments to employees that “the external and legal environment related to political and social issues continues to evolve.”

That’s required “a fresh look at our policies and practices,” Farley said.

The bottom line, Farley said, is that the company will not use quotas in hiring, will prioritize its resources for business goals “versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day,” and that its Employee Resource Groups are all open to all employees.

Further, he said, the company no longer will be part of the Equality Index.

Big news: We were in the middle of investigating woke policies @Ford but this morning Ford confirmed to me that they’re making changes.

Here are the changes:

• Ending participation in the @HRC’s woke Corporate Equality Index social credit system.

• It sounds like there will… pic.twitter.com/LAIxUgNicV

— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) August 28, 2024

The report said Ford confirmed the authenticity of the letter to Fox Business, explaining, “The communication to our global employees speaks for itself. We have nothing further to add.”

Predictably, officials at HRC were unhappy, claiming that Ford’s decision to focus on business issues, rather than the special interest organization’s social goals, was an “abandonment” of “hundreds of thousands of employees.”

HRC officials said, in a statement, the company now is “shirking” its responsibility.

The statement was similar to the HRC’s reactions when Lowes, Jack Daniels owner Brown-Forman and other companies dropped out the ideology.

Starbuck told followers, “So far you’ve helped me change corporate policy at Tractor Supply, John Deere, Harley Davidson, Polaris, Indian Motorcycle, Lowes and now Ford. We are winning and one by one we WILL bring sanity back to corporate America.”

A report at Fortune said Farley recognized, in his statement to employees, that they have a wide range of beliefs.

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Bob Unruh

Bob Unruh joined WND in 2006 after nearly three decades with the Associated Press, as well as several Upper Midwest newspapers, where he covered everything from legislative battles and sports to tornadoes and homicidal survivalists. He is also a photographer whose scenic work has been used commercially. Read more of Bob Unruh's articles here.