Toyota won’t sponsor Pride events following backlash from ‘anti-woke’ mob

Car-manufacturers Toyota have announced their “refocus” of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programmes means they won’t sponsor cultural events and parades such as LGBTQ+ Pride in the US.

In a memo sent to 50,000 US employees and more than 1,500 dealerships, the company said the decision follows a “highly politicised discussion” around business commitments to DEI.

“We will no longer sponsor cultural events such as festivals and parades that are not related to Stem [science, technology, engineering and maths] education and workforce readiness,” the memo read.

According to Bloomberg, Toyota will also no longer participate in cultural surveys, and will end their participation in the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) annual Corporate Equality Index, which once gave them a perfect score for their DEI efforts.

The car-makers will refocus employee resource groups for professional development, networking and mentoring with a “clear alignment to driving the company’s business”.

Robby Starbuck strikes again

The announcement comes after hard-line right-wing pundit Robby Starbuck took to X/Twitter to condemn the company for its commitment to DEI.

The firm was “one of the most-trusted brands in America but [has] gone totally woke”, he wrote. “I don’t think the values at corporate reflect the values many Toyota/Lexus owners have (with the exception of maybe Prius owners who probably like the woke stuff).”

After Toyota made the announcement, Starbuck wrote: “We’re winning and one by one we will bring sanity back to corporate America.” This seems to be his standard catchphrase.

He then asked his followers to contribute to his Patreon account to continue his research but did note that any donation was not tax-deductible. 

Toyota join the list of companies abandoning DEI

Toyota, which has its US headquarters in the highly conservative state of Texas, join a growing list of companies making U-turns on commitments to DEI, thanks to the backlash created by Starbuck.

Fellow car-maker Ford, along with Harley-Davidson, John Deere and tool maker Stanley Black & Decker have all recently taken similar steps.

Despite knowing the benefits that robust DEI policies and programmes bring, it seems that American businesses are willing to abandon so-called “woke-ness” to appease a loud, but small minority of people.

Research from GLAAD found that Americans are twice as likely to purchase and use brands that support the LGBTQ+ community, and 71 per cent of queer adults in the US are more likely to buy from brands that support the community.

With 30 per cent of Gen Z adults in the US identifying as queer, and holding a massive spending power of more than $1.4 trillion (£1.06 trillion), time will tell if companies choosing to abandon their commitment to the LGBTQ+ community and other minorities will be hit in the pocket.

The HRC’s 2024 LGBTQ+ Climate Survey found that 80 per cent of LGBTQ+ Americans would boycott companies that abandon DEI policies, and 52 per cent said they would urge others to do the same. 

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