Two major American corporations are dropping some of their diversity, equity, and inclusion policies as backlash to such initiatives intensifies. 

In a memo to its employees, Lowe’s, the North Carolina-based retailer, said it would not participate in surveys of the LGBT advocacy organization the Human Rights Campaign. Additionally, the company announced it would no longer sponsor or participate in festivals and parades.

The reversal comes as the company was awarded an almost perfect score in the Human Rights Campaign’s 2023 corporate equity index. The index tracks companies’ policies aimed at protecting LGBT employees.  Additionally, the retailer said it will consolidate various groups designed to represent diverse workers into one. 

Meanwhile, Ford Motor Company also told its employees that it would roll back some of its diversity policies, such as participating in the Human Rights Campaign’s workplace survey. It also said it would open employee resource groups to all employees. According to Bloomberg, the carmaker said it will “shift some of its corporate sponsorships and comment less on polarizing issues.”

Ford Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley said in an internal email obtained by Bloomberg, “We are mindful that our employees and customers hold a wide range of beliefs.”

“The external and legal environment related to political and social issues continues to evolve,” he added about the decision to adjust its policies. 

In a post on X, conservative filmmaker Robby Starbuck, who has been a leading figure in pushing companies to drop their diversity policies, took credit for the changes, writing “I messaged [Lowes] executives last week to let them know that I planned to expose their woke policies. This morning I woke up to an email where they preemptively made big changes.”

He listed the changes the company announced and said, “We’re now forcing multi-billion dollar organizations to change their policies without even posting just from fear they have of being the next company that we expose.”

Mr. Starbuck claimed that his movement was “winning” and would “bring sanity back to corporate America.”

He added that companies such as Tractor Supply Company, John Deere, Harley Davidson, Polaris, and Indian Motorcycle have also backtracked from their diversity policies.

In June, Tractor Supply Company announced it would “retire” its “current DEI goals while still ensuring a respectful environment.” In a statement about the changes, the company said it had “heard from customers that we have disappointed them.”

While Mr. Starbuck claimed victory for Lowe’s changing its policies, the company insisted they were the result of a Supreme Court decision that ended affirmative action at universities. Additionally, it said, “We may make additional changes over time.”

The Human Rights Campaign’s senior vice president of programs, research, and training, Orlando Gonzales, blasted the decision and called Mr. Starbuck a “radical,” blaming him for the changes. Speaking to Fox Business, Mr. Gonzales said, “Companies should not cower to a random guy with zero business experience who is so extreme he has been abandoned by the Republican Party.”

Mr. Gonzales’ comment appeared to refer to the Republican Party in Tennessee’s decision to block Mr. Starbuck from the primary ballot in 2022 when he attempted to run for Congress. 

Mr. Starbuck also claimed credit for Ford’s decision, writing on X, “This isn’t everything we want but it’s a great start. We’re now forcing multi-billion dollar organizations to change their policies without even posting just from fear they have of being the next company that we expose.”

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder, corporations began to expand their diversity policies and hired DEI professionals. A report from the Society for Human Resource Management found that in 2020, there was a 55 percent increase in the number of DEI roles created.

However, four years later, corporations are slashing DEI jobs and rolling back initiatives amid a growing backlash from critics who argue such initiatives accomplish the opposite of their stated goal and lead to discrimination based on race or gender.