The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is urging Black Americans not to spend their hard-earned dollars with companies that have rolled back their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
In its “Black Consumer Advisory,” the organization encourages Black consumers “to spend your money where you’re respected, support Black-owned businesses, and demand businesses prioritize people over profit” while advocating for polices “that insure people of color, women, veterans, those with a disability, and all protected groups have equal access to opportunities across the country.”
It further notes that “Black consumers possess immense economic power, with a purchasing power exceeding $1.7 trillion annually.”
The document notes that during “nationwide protests against systemic racism in 2020, many companies and institutions publicly committed to advancing racial equity” but that recently, “there has been a deliberate retreat from these pledges, driven by political pressure, backlash against DEI, and unfounded claims of ‘reverse discrimination.’”
The organization further asks Black consumers to take the following actions against companies that have backed away from DEI:
1. Spend Intentionally: Support businesses and organizations that maintain and expand their DEI commitments and prioritize investment in Black communities.
2. Demand Accountability: Call out corporations that have abandoned DEI initiatives and demand transparency in their practices.
3. Support Black-Owned Businesses: Prioritize Black-owned businesses and service providers in spending decisions.
4. Advocate for Change: Push for policies strengthening supplier diversity, workplace equity, and economic inclusion for Black professionals and entrepreneurs.
5. Stay Informed: Educate yourself and others about corporate rollbacks and their impact on Black communities.
“Together, we can push for meaningful progress and ensure that diversity, equity, and inclusion are prioritized and expanded,” the document concludes.
#BoycottTheNAACP
— American Freedmen ✊🏿🇺🇸 (@RuRuFreedmen) February 17, 2025
For pushing misinformation to the masses. DEI doesn’t benefit Freedmen. Please share with all of your family members. The NAACP is not to be trusted by our lineage folks. @arthurwatkins @CCFreedmen @ActifyPress @mamaynanjago @NikkiThaGodB1 https://t.co/mwuV1dBlRc
The NAACP calls out several prominent companies for moving away from DEI, including McDonald’s, Meta, Walmart, and several others.
Yet, as much as the NAACP claims to care about economic empowerment for Black Americans, its history suggests that they are more focused on using the government to improve conditions for Black Americans than on helping them seek solutions outside of the state.
This is no mistake.
Manning Johnson, a former Black Communist Party member, called out the organization in his 1958 book, "Color, Communism and Common Sense.”
Like the Communist Party, the N.A.A.C.P. has collected millions of dollars through exploitation of race issues. The bigger the race issue, the bigger the appeal and the bigger the contributions. Last year, according to Roy Wilkins, the N.A.A.C.P. had the ‘greatest financial year in its history.’ Yet one cannot find any report of any of this money being spent for factories and shops to provide jobs, land and home construction, specialized training for talented youth, hospitals, convalescent homes, classes in sanitation and personal hygiene, care and upkeep of property, combatting crime and juvenile delinquency, centers to aid Negro youth in preparing to meet stiff employment competition in science and industry.
Indeed, the organization, which Johnson calls “The National Association for the Agitation of Colored People,” has focused far more on government solutions that do little to help Black Americans than on promoting entrepreneurship in the Black community.
Indeed, even this current initiative against DEI reveals how little the organization cares about Black people. It has been shown over and over again that DEI disproportionately benefits White women more than anyone else.
It is almost as if this organization, like other leftist outfits, doesn’t want Black people to seek success unless the government is somehow involved. This is why Johnson’s comparison to Communism is apt. Little has changed since the 1930s when the author was a card-carrying Communist. The left seeks to use Black Americans to advance their agenda, nothing more, nothing less.
It is also worth noting that most of the companies that announced that they are revamping their diversity policies aren’t actually abandoning them. In their declarations, they reaffirmed that they are committed to hiring qualified individuals from diverse backgrounds.
This could mean they are still doing DEI without calling it DEI. Or, it could mean they are pursuing diversity without all the toxic trappings of the leftist version of DEI, which serves to divide Americans rather than unite them.
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