BeforeSocial media campaigns and shareholder proposals press companies to end diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. The Supreme Court's June 2023 ruling on race-conscious college admissions does not apply to private employers, but opponents of corporate DEI programs invoke it in pressing companies to change course, and the 2023 proxy season sees a marked rise in shareholder proposals opposing such programs. From mid-2024, campaigns organized on X by activist Robby Starbuck target individual firms including Tractor Supply, John Deere, Harley-Davidson, and Lowe's, several of which announce …
AfterBy August 2024, campaigns organized on X by activist Robby Starbuck have targeted individual firms including Tractor Supply, John Deere, Harley-Davidson, and Lowe's, several of which announce in the same weeks that they are scaling back diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. The pressure builds on an earlier, differently shaped phase: the 2023 proxy season sees a marked rise in shareholder proposals opposing DEI initiatives, and after the Supreme Court's June 2023 ruling on race-conscious college admissions — which does not apply to private employers — opponents of corporate DEI invoke it …