Waking Up

There is national consideration that is taking place right now in areas of employment, of corporate culture, and the values which corporate entities will embrace. And, a shift is occurring. The Bible teaches that we are to judged by righteous standards, not showing what James 2 calls "partiality," and that the Kingdom is predicated not on outward appearance, but on inward character. Galatians 3 states:
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

A piece at The Washington Stand published just over a week ago highlighted the decision of a major retailer to reverse a trajectory it had been on for over a decade.  The article, by Suzanne Bowdey, related:

People had been taking aim at Target’s iconic bullseye as far back as 2014, when the retailer became the corporate champion of same-sex marriage. Their support led to a chain reaction, providing cover for other major brands to wade into this brave new world of sexual radicalism. Under the leadership of leftist CEO Brian Cornell, they were one of the first businesses to sign onto legal briefs arguing for the redefinition of marriage, one of the first to open women’s restrooms and fitting rooms to biological men, and — in a move that few shoppers forgave — one of the first to sell chest-binders, packing underwear, and “tuck-friendly swimwear” to confused, trans-identifying kids.

But, the chain has made a change.  Bowdey writes:

Now, more than a decade into this social experiment, headquarters is throwing in the towel. Joining titans like Walmart, McDonalds, Tractor Supply, John Deere, Harley Davidson, Polaris, Indian Motorcycle, Lowe’s, Ford, Coors, Black & Decker, Jack Daniels, DeWalt tools, Craftsman, Caterpillar, Boeing, Toyota, and Nissan, the retailer hopes that relenting on some of its most offensive campaigns will put it back in Americans’ good graces.

Christian commentator and activist Robby Starbuck has been leading the charge against corporations who embrace a corporate culture that has been counterproductive to Target's bottom line.  He posted the latest bombshell on X:“Recently executives at Target found out I was doing a story on wokeness there. When we learned they were prepared to make changes, we shifted our focus to those changes instead.” The Stand piece said, "He posted a list of moves the company has committed to make, noting, 'I have to give their executives credit for making these changes, because it will send shockwaves in certain sectors of corporate America.'"  According to Starbuck, there will be no more kow-towing to the pro-LGBT Human Rights Campaign by reporting to its "woke Corporate Equality Index or any other DEI index."  No more marketing of Pride merchandise to kids. And, a rethinking of its actions concerning, diversity, equity, and inclusion, a concept that is under the microscope these days.

There are laws that affect the American workplace - from safety standards from OSHA to employment practices governed by the EEOC.  So, for government to attempt to produce change and conformity in the private sector is not a foreign concept.  Recently, President Trump issued an Executive Order, entitled, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.  The order stated:

Yet today, roughly 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, critical and influential institutions of American society, including the Federal Government, major corporations, financial institutions, the medical industry, large commercial airlines, law enforcement agencies, and institutions of higher education have adopted and actively use dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) or “diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility” (DEIA) that can violate the civil-rights laws of this Nation.

The order goes on to say: "The Federal Government is charged with enforcing our civil-rights laws. The purpose of this order is to ensure that it does so by ending illegal preferences and discrimination."  He has empowered federal agencies to address discriminatory practices under civil rights law.  

However, the warehouse shopping store chain, Costco, has decided to draw a line in the sand.  Another op-ed at The Washington Stand, also by Suzanne Bowdey, stated:

It’s a shrinking club, but there are still headstrong CEOs who refuse to bend to the anti-woke winds. None have grabbed more headlines than Costco, the big box holdout who’s clinging to DEI while a stampede of businesses run the other way. After voting down a shareholder resolution last Thursday to return to neutral, the heat is on. And if consumers won’t change the company’s mind, maybe 19 state attorneys general will.

The AG's said: "Although Costco’s motto is ‘do the right thing...it appears the company is doing the wrong thing — clinging to DEI policies that courts and businesses have rejected as illegal. Costco should treat every person equally and based on their merit, rather than based on divisive and discriminatory DEI practices. That reflects President Trump’s executive order encouraging the Private Sector to End Illegal DEI discrimination and Preferences.”

With Costco, according to Bowdey, "...the Free Enterprise Project, which is an arm of the National Center for Public Policy Research, offered an anti-DEI resolution that was voted down by 98% of the shareholders after the board frantically lobbied people to vote no." Stefan Padfield, who led the "project that offered the resolution," is quoted as saying: “Fortunately, the truth about DEI is being exposed as never before, and it is only a matter of time until DEI’s inherent shareholder-value-destroying nature forces even managers like those at Costco to get back to neutral and focus on creating value by providing great products and services rather than engaging in neo-Marxist and neo-racist social engineering projects..."

From a Biblical perspective, these ideas that are rooted in partiality, which lead to division and to the embrace of ideas that are not grounded in fairness and justice. In a country that is predicated on individual freedoms, to try to discourage achievement in favor of manufactured standards that circumvent the worth of the individual and his or her God-given abilities can cause damage in workplaces and in relationships. 

We are called to be people who pursue peace with others - it does not build peace when the privacy of girls in their private spaces is threatened.  It does not produce peace when matters of race and sexuality become flashpoints that divide.  In the best interest of our nation, and in the promotion of Biblical ideals, we can be the people who walk in the love of Christ, our Savior who does not see partiality, who invites all to be part of His Kingdom.