Tractor Supply Company announced it would remove its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) roles, eliminate its goals for lowering carbon emissions and stop financially supporting LGBTQ+ Pride events after receiving backlash from conservative customers.
The company announced the changes to its policies on social media, releasing a statement.
“We work hard to live up to our Mission and Values every day and represent the values of the communities and customers we serve,” it said. “We have heard from customers that we have disappointed them. We have taken this feedback to heart.”
Tractor Supply is a staple in rural communities across the country, including in North Carolina. Nearly 100 locations are scattered across the state, and most of these stores have LGBTQ+ customer bases. Items the store sells include farm supplies, animal feed, tools, fencing and clothing, with most of its customer base working as “farmers, horse owners, ranchers, tradesmen and suburban and rural homeowners,” according to the company’s website.
In the past, Tractor Supply has been recognized as a safe place to work, and in fact, the organization was highlighted in Bloomberg’s Gender Equality Index and Newsweek’s inaugural list of America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity.
However, conservative music video director Robby Starbuck started a campaign on X (formally Twitter) to “expose” Tractor Supply for its inclusive initiatives.
“I take no pleasure in bringing this all to light,” Starbuck posted. “I’m a Tennessean who loves to support TN companies but as a proud Tennessean I know these woke priorities don’t align with our state or @TractorSupply’s customer base.”
Starbuck claimed the company was “funding sex changes.” As well, he criticized the DEI hiring practices, in-office Pride Month decorations and climate change policies Tractor Supply had.
As a result of a mass online campaign, Tractor Supply announced sweeping changes to its various rules and policies. Changes include eliminating its DEI roles and retiring its current DEI goals “while still ensuring a respectful environment,” and withdrawing its carbon emissions goals. The posted statement also said the company would no longer report data to the Human Rights Campaign regarding its diversity and inclusion efforts.
“Tractor Supply’s embarrassing capitulation to the petty whims of anti-LGBTQ extremists puts the company out of touch with the vast majority of Americans who support their LGBTQ friends, family, and neighbors,” GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said in a statement. “It sends an appalling message, during Pride month, to see a rural staple go out of their way to bring harm to their LGBTQ customers and employees.”