Walmart, the nation's largest private employer, rolls back DEI under pressure
www.usatoday.com

... Walmart, the nation's largest private employer, is the latest company to make changes to its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives under pressure from a conservative activist.

The retail giant said it would not renew a racial equity center it created following the 2020 murder of George Floyd and it would no longer participate in an annual benchmark index from LGBTQ+ advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign.

Robby Starbuck said he warned Walmart last week he was working on a report about "wokeness." According to Starbuck, the company then engaged in "productive conversations" to make changes.

"Removing wokeness from Walmart has both downstream effects on suppliers and it sets the tone for corporate America," Starbuck told USA TODAY. "Changing the normal operating policy at a nearly $1 trillion company is a gargantuan feat that many have tried to achieve but no one until now has actually been able to get done."

Walmart also committed to monitoring third-party items in the Walmart marketplace for "inappropriate sexual and/or transgender products marketed to children;" reviewing all Pride funding; and no longer using the term LatinX in official communications, Starbuck said. ...

Robby Starbuck
en.wikipedia.org

... Career

Starbuck directed music videos and commercials in California before moving to Williamson County, Tennessee in 2019.[1] He transitioned to investing in real estate and the stock market.[1]

Starbuck said he had received pushback from being a Republican in Hollywood and began posting about his beliefs on social media in 2015.[1] During the COVID-19 pandemic, he campaigned against mask and vaccine mandates.[4][5] In 2021, Starbuck declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination to represent Tennessee's 5th congressional district.[6] The state Republican party removed him from the 2022 primary ballot, and this decision was ultimately upheld by the Tennessee Supreme Court.[6] Starbuck instead ran as a write-in candidate, but did not get the nomination.[1]

In June 2023, a photo agency issued a legal threat to Starbuck after he used a copyrighted paparazzi photo of Megan Fox and her family in a social media post accusing the actress of "child abuse" for having "forced" her children to "wear girls clothes".[7] Fox responded to Starbuck's post, saying "Exploiting my child's gender identity to gain attention in your political campaign has put you on the wrong side of the universe."[7]
Anti-DEI activism

In June 2024, Starbuck began campaigning on social media against companies unpopular with conservatives because of their DEI initiatives, support for LGBTQ+ events, climate change strategies, and other social policies.[4] ...

Trump defends Bud Light ahead of fundraiser hosted by Anheuser-Busch lobbyist (February 2024)
ny1.com

... On Tuesday, former President Donald Trump offered a defense of the world's largest beer company after nearly a year of right-wing ire towards Anheuser-Busch InBev for a social media promotion involving its Bud Light brand and a transgender influencer.

The offer of a "Second Chance" from the frontrunner for the Republican nomination came as a major fundraiser for Trump's campaign is set to be hosted by one of the beer company's top lobbyists next month. ...

So... yet another purchase of Pres-elect Trump?