Home Depot’s DEI Removal Has Activist Group Calling For Boycott 

Another day, another company rightfully facing consequences for abandoning its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The latest company facing a potential boycott is none other than The Home Depot. 

According to Newsweek, People’s Union USA founder John Schwartz has called for a 31-day boycott against the home improvement retail store for quietly removing their DEI initiatives from their website. People’s Union USA is a non-partisan activist group focused on “economic resistance, corporate accountability, and real justice for the working class.”

“We the people have had and seen enough. So this July, we make a different kind of noise. We stop shopping with them, we stop funding the systems that don’t serve us. And we shift our energy to small businesses, to local shops, to the people who actually care. Because we are the economy,” Schwartz said in a video posted to Instagram.

“For over 45 years, our business success has been driven by our eight core values, including respect for all people and taking care of our people. We’re proud to have a culture that welcomes everyone, and we believe it helps us achieve our business goals by supporting associates, building relationships and fostering innovation,” Home Depot said in a statement sent to Newsweek. 

It appears Home Depot has rebranded its DEI program to the more generic “WeAreTHD.” A look at its website shows very little in terms of DEI commitments or even the word diversity. The most I could find was the 2024 racial equity assessment that highlighted its prior commitment to DEI and a stat revealing that 58 percent of its new hires were “ethnically diverse.” It feels more than a bit self-serving for Home Depot to keep up the report and statistics while erasing any public support for DEI. 

The pullback from DEI initiatives has proven to have adverse consequences for several businesses this year. Target is among the most notable as it went from being a brand favored by Black and queer consumers to one no one seems to be rocking with. The company wasted no time announcing it would be ending its DEI initiatives shortly after President Trump took office. 

The move sparked outrage among consumers and activist groups nationwide. Dr Jamal Bryant was the first to call for a boycott of Target and it appears to have taken hold as foot traffic has steadily been down in Target stores throughout the year. In May, the company reported a drop in quarterly sales during an earnings call. The boycott has proven so successful that other companies have begun listing consumer boycotts as potential sales risks for investors. 

What makes the companies pulling back from DEI initiatives look so bad is that we’ve seen several companies stand ten toes down on DEI and face little to no consequences. In fact, a recent poll revealed that companies who maintain their DEI initiatives actually have better reputations. Costco announced it’d be keeping its DEI initiatives and has seen sales grow this year. Apple similarly announced that its shareholders voted to keep its DEI programs, which predictably sent President Trump into a hissy fit, but no legal action has been taken against the company. 

While the Trump administration has made a big show of cracking down on DEI in universities and colleges, it hasn’t taken nearly as an aggressive stance against private business. Considering that the administration ostensibly wants to be seen as “pro-business” (one look at the big, horrifying bill shows they certainly aren’t pro-worker), one has to wonder if Trump is all bark no bite when it comes to regulating DEI in private businesses. 

If the last six months have revealed anything it’s that the only people actually tripping over DEI are the weirdos in the White House and trolls online. If companies want to avoid boycotts and a potential loss in sales, they should continue to embrace DEI and not abandon it. 

SEE ALSO:

Poll Shows Companies Maintaing DEI Intiatives Have Better Reputations

Survey: High-Level Business Execs Say DEI Is Necessary

Read more