DEI programs could lead to legal problems for corporations, state officials say.
Fifteen state attorneys general urged a group of top corporate leaders on April 15 to drop their companies’ diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.
Such programs are “divisive” and “unlawful,” the state officeholders, led by Andrew Bailey of Missouri, said in correspondence addressed to Business Roundtable.
The six-page letter was signed by 14 other state attorneys general, including James Uthmeier of Florida, Chris Carr of Georgia, David Yost of Ohio, and Todd Rokita of Indiana. All of the attorneys general are Republicans.
“The Business Roundtable has decided that racist DEI initiatives are more important than [the] free market,” Bailey told The Epoch Times.
“I am fighting to protect working Americans and investors from these woke political trends and blatant racial discrimination.”
Business Roundtable’s members include CEOs of major corporations including Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, Greg Adams of Kaiser Permanente, Tim Cook of Apple, Kathy Warden of Northrop Grumman, and Dr. Albert Bourla of Pfizer.
These members “represent every sector of the economy and bring a unique and important perspective to bear on policy issues that impact the economy,” according to the group’s website.
In the correspondence, the attorneys general urged Business Roundtable “to abandon the unlawful and misguided DEI initiatives that have for too long harmed businesses and consumers alike.”
Many of the corporations embrace “divisive DEI policies” that “risk exposing [their] organizations to substantial liability,” the letter said.
After CEOs “abandoned their fiduciary responsibilities in exchange for social cachet,” state attorneys general have carried out “investigations of major corporations under state consumer protection laws,” the letter said.
For example, after the United Nations-backed Net Zero Banking Alliance—which aims to have companies change investment practices to support climate goals—was investigated by 19 state attorneys general, all the banks that were investigated withdrew from the alliance, the letter said.
In January, financial services company Morgan Stanley said that it was withdrawing from the alliance but would continue to support emissions targets.
State attorneys general have also sued under state human rights laws “to push back against illegal corporate racial preference policies,” the letter said.
