After George Floyd died at the hands of a Minneapolis Police officer in the summer of 2020, some of the biggest household names known to everyday Americans began to adopt diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, initiatives to help people of diverse backgrounds and experiences have more of a presence and a say in the corporate world.
In 2024, vocal backlash from conservative mouthpieces and influencers sparked a tidal wave of action that made some of the biggest American businesses roll back their DEI initiatives.
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Tractor Supply Co. (TSCO) , Microsoft (MSFT) , Lowe's (LOW) , John Deere (DE) , Harley Davidson (HOG) , and Walmart (WMT) were some examples of the smorgasbord of publicly traded companies that pulled back in fear of a larger boycott of their respective products and services.
President Trump's re-election and return to the White House has only intensified and legitimatized the anti-DEI movement. On January 21, the day after his inauguration, the President rescinded what his administration called "Illegal DEI and DEIA policies" and revoked three other executive orders marked as promoting "Illegal Discrimination in the Federal Government" with the stroke of a Sharpie.
"This week, I will also end the government policy of trying to socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life," Trump said during his inaugural speech. "We will forge a society that is colorblind and merit-based."
GM removed 'DEI' line from federal filing
In its latest 10-K filing with the SEC, Detroit Big Three automaker General Motors made a subtle change that removed the words "diversity, equity, and inclusion," as many publicly traded corporations, including Disney (DIS) , Coca-Cola (KO) , PepsiCo (PEP) and investment bank Goldman Sachs (GS) have begun either rescinding or watering down the related language in respective reports.
Under a subhead labeled as "Human Capital" in GM's Fiscal 2023 10-K filing made on January 30, 2024, the automaker denotes that its DEI initiatives are "fundamental" to its company values, adding that its employees are what helps them stay on its "path towards achieving our vision of a world with zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion."
"Our people are our most valuable asset, and we must continue to attract and retain the best talent in the world in order to achieve this vision," it reads.
"As a result, we strive to create a Workplace of Choice to attract, retain, and develop top talent by adhering to a responsible employer philosophy, which includes, among other things, commitments to create job opportunities, pay workers fairly, ensure safety and well-being and promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)."
However, the same section in GM's Fiscal 2024 10-K filing made on January 28, 2025, uses nearly the exact same language, apart from a very strategic omission.
"Our people are our most valuable asset, and we must continue to attract and retain the best talent in the world in order to achieve this vision," it reads.
"As a result, we strive to create a Workplace of Choice to attract, retain, motivate, and develop top talent by adhering to a responsible employer philosophy, which includes, among other things, commitments to create job opportunities, pay workers fairly, ensure safety and well-being and foster an inclusive work environment in which all employees can perform at their best."
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GM's Federal tie-up
Like Coca-Cola, Pepsi and GM's cross-town auto rival Ford (F) , General Motors is a contractor for the Federal Government.
Under Executive Order 14173, titled "Ending Illegal Discrimination And Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity," signed by President Trump on January 21, federal contractors who do not comply face consequences.
The Order formally calls for a "streamlining" of the Federal contracting process," which also includes requiring "Federal contractors and subcontractors to comply with our civil-rights laws."
In this situation, the Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs is required to cease "promoting “diversity,” holding Federal contractors and subcontractors responsible for taking “affirmative action," and "allowing or encouraging Federal contractors and subcontractors to engage in workforce balancing based on race, color, sex, sexual preference, religion, or national origin."
Additionally, under the order, "the employment, procurement, and contracting practices of Federal contractors and subcontractors shall not consider race, color, sex, sexual preference, religion, or national origin in ways that violate the Nation’s civil rights laws."
General Motors
GM has a 10-year contract to supply the State Department with armored vehicles. According to a November 2023 statement, the automaker's Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract has a ceiling value of $300 million.
GM is tasked with providing the State Department with Heavy-Duty armored Sport Utility Vehicles (HD SUVs), essentially specially built armored Chevrolet Suburban SUVs for the Diplomatic Security Service. According to GM, these special Suburbans are designed to not only be better, faster cars for the government but also easier and cheaper for GM to build.
“Everyone on our team has committed to partnering with the State Department to ensure we deliver the best vehicles to support their mission," GM Defense president Steve duMont said in a November 2023 statement. "We look forward to continuing this partnership and bringing this exciting new platform to other U.S. government and allied defense and security customers around the world."
Related: Toyota submits to social media pressure, reverses crucial policy
GM's actions differ from Ford, Toyota
It should be noted that GM's actions differ from those of Ford or Toyota.
In a letter first shared internally to Ford employees and posted on X (formerly Twitter) by conservative activist Robby Starbuck, CEO Jim Farley penned that the automaker is "mindful" that its employees and customers "hold a wide range of beliefs" and that "the external and legal environment related to political and social issues continues to evolve."
Farley added that Ford does not utilize hiring quotas and will not use them for minority dealerships or suppliers. He also announced that Ford will stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) Corporate Equality Index and other similar "best places to work" lists.
But while the Blue Oval also omitted any mention of diversity, equity, and inclusion in its 10-K filings, GM is still listed as a signatory to HRC’s The Business Coalition for the Equality Act.
Additionally, General Motors still has a section on its corporate website dedicated to showcasing its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, where it showcases its achievements of "firsts" that include GM having the "First Woman CEO and Chair in the auto industry," being the "First Fortune 500 company to have a Black director on its Board, the "First and only automaker to have a women’s dealer program" and the "First automaker to establish formal supplier diversity and diverse dealer programs."
"We are committed to building and selling the best vehicles on the market to everyone, everywhere. To deliver on this, we have built an inclusive culture where employees, customers, dealers, and suppliers of all backgrounds, identities, and abilities can fully participate in GM’s present and future," GM says on its DEI section of its corporate website.
TheStreet has reached out to General Motors for additional comment.
General Motors is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker GM.
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