It would appear that no corporation is escaping the gravitational pull of woke politics like DEI policies and ESG adherence. This includes the most famous tractor company in the Western hemisphere, John Deere.
Filmmaker Robby Starbuck has made it his mission to root out and expose submission to radical leftist policies by corporations, especially those that rely so much on normal Americans for their success. Starbuck's recent investigation and expose of Tractor Supply Co. forced the company to abandon its DEI programs and walk back any connections to leftist politics, vowing instead to focus on real American priorities.
Now, fresh off his win, Starbuck has turned his attention to John Deere, and what he discovered is massively disappointing.
According to him, John Deere's submission to woke policies goes deep. Deeper than you would think for a company that primarily deals with farmers and rural Americans. He posted a video on X, but breaks down what he found in a bullet-pointed list:
• Funding a pride event for kids as young as 3
• "Genderbread man" training
• They ask employees to list their "preferred pronouns" on all communications
• Bill Gates is listed as their largest shareholder
• John Deere celebrated their accounting and finance team taking United Way’s 21 day "United For Equity" program
• When I did "United For Equity" program it promoted Ibram Kendi, the woke children’s book "Anti-Racist Baby", "Awake to Woke to Work", a podcast on the concept of "Whiteness", woke activist Robin DiAngelo, bigotry against Christians who supposedly have "Christian Privilege" and more
• The woke policies have spread across the global John Deere brand with many of their DEI policies also being forced on their Latin America and India branches
• LGBTQ & race based identity groups at corporate
• A total commitment to DEI policies
• 95/100 CEI score from the HRC
It’s time to expose John Deere.@JohnDeere has been one of the most beloved brands by conservative farmers but recently on CEO John May’s watch, they’ve gone woke.
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) July 9, 2024
Here’s some of what we found:
• Funding a pride event for kids as young as 3
• "Genderbread man" training
•… pic.twitter.com/nWnSUCW08K
Noah Wall, Executive Director at the State Financial Officers Foundation, added that the only reason John Deere has a 95/100 from the Human Rights Campaign is that they "provided all the required benefits (which include paid transitions for kids) - just forgot to make a guide" for their benefits.
On top of all of that, John Deere announced massive layoffs and are moving their factories from America to Mexico. According to Fox Business, operational costs in the United States, as well as a lack of sales for tractors, is forcing the company to rid itself of hundreds of employees from across the nation:
The company is slashing around 280 workers from a plant in East Moline, Illinois, while another 230 employees are being let go at a factory in Davenport, Iowa. About 100 production employees at the company’s Dubuque, Iowa, plant will also be impacted. All layoffs are said to be effective from Aug. 30, the company tells FOX Business.
About 500 employees have been let go at its Waterloo plant in Iowa, per WQAD.
If there's one thing we can say for sure, it's that DEI is expensive for corporations as it not only requires a lot of money to implement in order to virtue signal effectively, it also results in fewer sales as products either decrease in quality or the company alienates its customer base.
John Deere seems to be no exception, and this is borderline heartbreaking, as it's one of those companies that's been in America since before the Civil War and is wildly popular with rural Americans.
However, no major corporation is safe. This is why it's important to make your voice heard. As Starbuck notes in his video, calling the corporate office and voicing your disagreement is important. Make it known that they've made a grave mistake.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member