[KARAH RUCKER]

FARM EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER JOHN DEERE — IS THE LATEST COMPANY TO ANNOUNCE —

IT WILL NO LONGER SPONSOR “SOCIAL OR CULTURAL AWARENESS” EVENTS.

THE MOVE FOLLOWS A TREND AMONG MAJOR U-S COMPANIES TO SCALE BACK ON DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION INITIATIVES AMID CONSERVATIVE CRITICISM.

THE ILLINOIS BASED COMPANY ALSO PLANS TO REVIEW ITS TRAINING MATERIALS TO REMOVE ANY “SOCIALLY-MOTIVATED MESSAGES” —

TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL AND LOCAL LAWS. IN A POST ON X THE COMPANY SAID:

“The existence of diversity quotas and pronoun identification have never been and are not company policy.”

THIS SHIFT ECHOES A RECENT MOVE BY TRACTOR SUPPLY — WHICH ALSO SCALED BACK ITS CORPORATE DIVERSITY AND CLIMATE EFFORTS —

FOLLOWING ONLINE PUSHBACK LED BY CONSERVATIVE FIGURES.

JOHN DEERE’S DECISION HAS NOT GONE UNNOTICED OR UNCHALLENGED.

CIVIL RIGHTS AND ADVOCACY GROUPS QUICKLY VOICED THEIR CONCERNS FOLLOWING JOHN DEERE’S ANNOUNCEMENT —

WITH THE NATIONAL BLACK FARMERS ASSOCIATION HIGHLIGHTING THE POTENTIAL SETBACKS TO DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION EFFORTS IN THE BUSINESS WORLD.

THEY ALSO POINTED OUT THAT THIS DECISION COMES JUST ONE MONTH AFTER JOHN DEERE AGREED TO PAY $1-POINT-1 MILLION DOLLARS —

IN BACK WAGES TO 2-HUNDRED AND 77 BLACK AND HISPANIC JOB APPLICANTS —

FOLLOWING ACCUSATIONS OF HIRING DISCRIMINATION BY THE LABOR DEPARTMENT.

FOR STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS, I’M LAUREN TAYLOR.

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