Walmart Backs Down on DEI Effort, Removes Some LGBTQ Items

Walmart confirmed Monday that it is ending some of its diversity initiatives, removing some LGBTQ-related items from its website and winding down a nonprofit that funded programs for minorities.

The nation’s largest employer, which has about 1.6 million American workers, joined a growing list of companies that have backed away from diversity, equity and inclusion efforts after feeling the heat from conservative activists.

Some have also attributed changes to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last year, which struck down affirmative action programs at colleges.

These companies include Tractor supplywhich said in June it was eliminating DEI roles and ending sponsorship of Pride festivals. Lowe’s, Ford and Molson Coors have also scaled back some of their equity and inclusion policies in recent months.

Others, such as Anheuser-Busch-owned Bud Light and Goalhave faced sharp backlash and declining sales following marketing campaigns or merchandise focused on the LGBTQ community.

In a statement, Walmart said it is “willing to change with our employees and customers who represent all of America.”

“We’ve been on a journey and know we’re not perfect, but every decision comes from a place where we want to foster a sense of belonging, open doors to opportunity for all our employees, customers and suppliers and be a Walmart for everyone,” the statement said.

Among the changes, Walmart will no longer allow third-party sellers to sell some LGBTQ-themed items on Walmart’s website, including items marketed to transgender youth like bras, company spokeswoman Molly Blakeman said.

She said it also recently decided to stop sharing data with the Human Rights Campaign, a nonprofit that tracks corporate LGBTQ policies, or with other similar organizations.

In addition, the big-box retailer is winding down the Center for Racial Equity, a nonprofit that Walmart started in 2020 after George Floyd’s murder sparked protests across the country. At the time, Walmart and the company’s foundation pledged $100 million over five years to fight systemic racism and create the center.

Over the past year, the company has phased out supplier diversity programs that gave preferential funding to some groups, such as women and minorities, following the Supreme Court ruling to end affirmative action.

It has also moved away from using the term “diversity, equity and inclusion,” or DEI, in corporate documents, employee titles and employee resource groups. For example, its former chief diversity officer is now called the chief belonging officer.

Still, Walmart will continue to award grants, disaster relief and funding for events like Pride parades, but with more guidelines on how funding can be used, Blakeman said.

Some recent changes came on the heels of pressure from conservative activist Robby Starbuck, who threatened a consumer boycott of Walmart. Starbuck, a vocal DEI opponent who had also put heat on Tractor Supply, touted Walmart’s changes in a post on X, describing them as “the biggest victory yet for our movement to end vigilantism in corporate America.”

Walmart had conversations with Starbuck over the past week and already had some DEI-related changes underway, Blakeman said.

Walmart’s DEI changes were first reported by Bloomberg News.