CNN Money is reporting that Wal-Mart is going to stop making donations to gay organizations. While I do shop at Wal-Mart that often (actually, almost never), I now will definitely make sure that I NEVER shop at Wal-Mart. I am so very tired of the Christianists telling businesses to do in running their operations. It is sad that a company as large as Wal-Mart lacks the backbone to tell the Don Wildmons of the world to take a hike. Here's how Wal-Mart tries to hide their knuckling under to bigots:
We are not currently planning corporate-level contributions to GLBT groups," said Mona Williams, the company's senior vice president of corporate communications. Individual stores can still donate to gay groups.
By way of explanation, Ms. Williams cited a policy adopted last fall saying that Wal-Mart would not make corporate contributions "to support or oppose highly controversial issues" unless they directly relate to the company's ability to serve its customers.
Inasmuch as many members of society besides gays consider fundamentalist Christians to be controversial, will Wal-Mart stop making contributions to all their organizations? Using Wal-Mart's supposed standard, ever gay-bashing religious denomination and organization (e.g., the Boy Scouts) should be cut off. I agree with the CNN reporter's final comment:
The lesson here may be that it's hard to find a middle ground when it comes to gay rights in the workplace. A company either believes in workplace equality for all, and is willing to stand up and say so, or it doesn't. It's pretty clear where Wal-Mart stands.
Wal-Mart clearly has failed this standard.
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