Civil rights groups call on major corporations to stick with DEI programs

AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — A broad group of civil rights organizations are calling on the CEOs and board members of major companies to maintain their commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. An open letter issued on Thursday by 19 organizations and directed at Fortune 1000 companies said companies that abandon DEI programs are shirking their fiduciary responsibility to employees, consumers and shareholders. Companies such as Ford, Lowes, John Deere and Harley-Davidson that had faced pressure from conservative activitsts recently announced they would scale back their diversity policies. The civil rights groups included the NAACP, the National Organization for Women, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Asian Americans Advancing Justice and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.