Walmart rolls back on D.E.I initiative amid conservative pressure

American multinational retail corporation, Walmart, has announced a significant rollback of its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, joining a growing list of major corporations scaling back inclusivity efforts following conservative criticism.

The retail giant confirmed to outlets including Bloomberg and the Associated Press that it is discontinuing practices such as prioritising suppliers based on race and gender, halting racial equity training for employees, and withdrawing from the LGBTQ rights group Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index.

The changes were first announced on X by Robby Starbuck, a prominent conservative commentator and critic of DEI initiatives, who claimed the move was a response to his pressure. 

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Starbuck said he had productive conversations with Walmart executives, who allegedly committed to these policy shifts to pre-empt a critical exposé on “wokeness” at the company ahead of the holiday shopping season.

While Walmart confirmed discussions with Starbuck, it denied that his involvement solely influenced the decisions, asserting that it had been reviewing its DEI programmes prior to the engagement.

In addition to policy changes, Walmart has agreed to monitor its online marketplace for listings by third-party sellers of products Starbuck described as “sexual and/or transgender products marketed to children.” 

The company pledged to remove such items if deemed necessary. It also plans to review its grants for Pride events to ensure they do not financially support sexualised content that may be unsuitable for kids.

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