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PepsiCo representatives met with civil rights leaders from the National Action Network (NAN) after Reverend Al Sharpton threatened to lead a boycott over the company’s decision to scale back parts of its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives . After sending a letter to the food and beverage brand on April 4, 2025, outlining details of the intended boycott, Sharpton issued a statement on Tuesday, April 15, saying that he and several members of NAN had a “constructive conversation” lasting over an hour with PepsiCo Chairman Ramon Laguarta and PepsiCo North America CEO Steven Williams. During the meeting at PepsiCo’s global headquarters in Purchase, NY, they had a chance “to discuss our grievances over reports they were rolling back nearly $500 million in DEI commitments .” “We agreed to follow up meetings within the next few days,” Sharpton wrote. “After that continued dialogue, NAN Chairman Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson and I, both former members of the company’s African...
The Trump administration has rescinded a historic settlement designed to improve wastewater treatment services for residents in majority-Black communities in Lowndes County, Alabama, where inadequate infrastructure has long led to raw sewage exposure. On Friday, April 11, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the termination of the 2-year-old agreement made with the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) under the Biden administration , describing it as an “ illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.” “The DOJ will no longer push ‘environmental justice’ as viewed through a distorting, DEI lens,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon. “ President [Donald] Trump made it clear: Americans deserve a government committed to serving every individual with dignity and respect, and to expending taxpayer resources in accordance with the national interest, not arbitrary criteria.” On Jan. 20, 2025 — his first day back in office — Trump had signed an executive...
Harvard University does not intend to change its DEI efforts to align with the Trump Administration. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, President Donald Trump issued a two-week deadline that requires schools and university to no longer consider “racial preferences” in admissions, financial aid, or hiring. Educational institutions that fail to comply risk losing federal funding. T his aligns with the administration’s goal to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts, which has played out with the closing and ending of “ all DEIA initiatives, offices and programs” within the federal government. “Colleges and universities are going to find themselves between a rock and a hard place,” Angel B. Pérez, CEO of the National Association for College Admission Counseling, said to AP News at the time. “They know that what they’re doing is not illegal, but they are worried that if they do not comply, not having federal funding will decimate them.” Harvard University Responds In a...
Dove wants increased representation in the digital world, leading the global personal care brand to launch a guide to help designers create characters with Black hair textures and protective styles for video games. “Code My Crown” — created with the help of Black game developers, artists, academics, and stylists — features instructions, personal insights, detailed references, and complete open-source code. “In the real world, there is an incredible variety of Black hairstyles. But this is rarely reflected in the gaming world,” said Lead Guide Contributor and Founder of the Open Source Afro Hair Library (Osahl) A.M. Darke in the guide. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Prof. A.M. Darke (@prettydarke) Recent research indicates that 85% of Black gamers believe video games poorly represent Black hair textures, according to Dove. Additionally, around 80% of Black gamers report feeling excluded, discriminated against, or inadequate when they do not see accurate...
Lewis Hamilton has made it his mission to diversify his sport. Hamilton, raised in North London, England, began racing at 8 years old and experienced a lack of representation in the sport firsthand. However, winning created an opportunity for him to feel accepted, he admits in conversation with GQ. “Being the only Black kid on the circuit, struggling at school, really always my big drive was acceptance — ‘If I win the race, I will receive that acceptance in this world,'” he expressed. View this post on Instagram A post shared by AFROTECH (@afro.tech) Hamilton began to allocate a lot of his time towards go-karting at a young age with the support of his father, Anthony, who was his mentor and manager, Formula 1 reports. Anthony simultaneously had three jobs at a time to support his son’s driving career. The sacrifice would pay off even within Hamilton’s childhood years. “We won the first six races…Then we just kept going. We kept winning. We kept winning championships,” Hamilton...
The Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs (RICE), dedicated to expanding opportunities for Black entrepreneurs in Atlanta, GA, and beyond, has received a $2 million donation from The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation. According to a news release, Blank’s donation will help the center move forward with RICE 2.0, a hub for innovation, collaboration, and economic empowerment that will provide essential resources for Black business founders, including small business grants, expanded programming, and mentorship opportunities. “This investment reflects our chairman’s entrepreneurial journey and his commitment to giving back to Atlanta, a city that has given him so much,” Blank Foundation President Fay Twersky said. “RICE’s extraordinary work supporting entrepreneurs creates pathways to economic mobility and opportunity. By investing in entrepreneurs at all stages, we’re fostering collective thriving where individual success strengthens entire communities.” In 1978, Arthur Blank...
Florida A&M University (FAMU) has lost a significant grant that helped produced 60% of the nation’s Ph.D. graduates in pharmaceutical sciences. According to the Tallahassee Democrat, the Historically Black College and University’s (HBCU) pharmacy school and its Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) program will not receive planned funding because a $16.3 million grant supporting them was terminated on March 21. The grant, awarded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and renewed in 2024, was originally scheduled to run through March 2029. “The funding was awarded to support new faculty hires and enhanced research in key areas such as artificial intelligence, bioinformatics and cancer biology,” FAMU Interim President Timothy Beard said in a statement, according to the outlet. “For nearly 40 years, faculty and graduate students have relied on this center to conduct biomedical and health research.” He also mentioned, “The program is a critical contributor to the...
Cost of Doing Business (CODB), the holding company co-founded by Topicals CEO Olamide Olowe and President Sochi Mbadugha, has acquired premium haircare brand Bread Beauty Supply. According to a news release, the acquisition is CODB’s first step in building brands that connect culture, community, and commerce — especially as many companies scale back their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts . “At a time when DEI commitments are being rolled back, it’s critical that Black-owned businesses not only survive — we have to win,” Olowe said. “Maeva Heim, BREAD’s Founder, is one of the most talented creatives in the space and has led BREAD to have a major impact in the hair care industry, and with CODB’s resources and expertise, we’re ensuring that it continues to grow while remaining deeply rooted in its mission and creative ethos.” Photo Credit: Gold Owolabi With Bread now under CODB, the brand is set for growth while preserving its commitment to textured hair care. The...
Costco’s consumer base is on the rise. According to Retail Brew, the retailer has continued seeing an increase in its foot traffic, having reached its 13th consecutive week during the week of March 17. Costco’s influx of customers is in part due to its decision to uphold diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). It sparked a “buy in” led by Civil Rights activist Rev. Al Sharpton in January 2025 at Costco Wholesale, 1055 Hudson St., in Union, NJ. “We are planning to release a boycott list in the coming days,” Sharpton told TMZ at the time. “But in the interim, we are going to do a ‘buy-cott,’ which means we are going to support those who support diversity.” As AFROTECH™ previously told you, Costco’s board of directors requested for its shareholders to vote against a proposal from the National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR) that would dismantle its DEI programs. “Our success at Costco Wholesale has been built on service to our critical stakeholders: employees, members, and...
Target’s foot traffic has taken another decline amid a 40-day boycott. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the retailer reversed its three-year diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) commitments, dismantling a program that helped Black and minority-owned businesses secure shelf space. Additionally, the company is no longer required to submit reports to external diversity-focused groups. “Many years of data, insights, listening, and learning have been shaping this next chapter in our strategy,” said Kiera Fernandez, chief community impact and equity officer at Target, according to NBC News. “And as a retailer that serves millions of consumers every day, we understand the importance of staying in step with the evolving external landscape, now and in the future — all in service of driving Target’s growth and winning together.” This comes as other major companies , like Walmart , have removed race and gender as factors for granting supplier contracts. McDonald’s also discontinued its...
The Walt Disney Company and its ABC television network have joined the list of media companies the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is investigating for their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices. On Thursday, March 27, 2025, FCC Chair Brendan Carr announced concerns that Disney and ABC might be “promoting invidious forms of DEI discrimination” and said the agency’s Enforcement Bureau would examine whether any of their past or current policies violated any equal employment opportunity regulations, according to NPR. “Numerous reports indicate that Disney’s leadership went all in on invidious forms of DEI discrimination a few years ago and apparently did so in a manner that infected many aspects of your company’s decisions,” Carr wrote in a letter to Disney CEO Robert Iger. The inquiry follows Disney’s reduction of diversity efforts , including the termination of some initiatives and changes in the language used to describe DEI. “We are reviewing the Federal...
After spending significant dollars in DEI efforts, the University of Michigan has closed two offices tied to equity and inclusion. The Detroit Free Press reports that the public research university has spent nearly $250 million on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts in recent years. However, the university has now decided to dismantle its Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI) and the Office for Health Equity and Inclusion (OHEI).” “Student-facing services in ODEI will shift to other offices focused on student access and opportunity,” the school said in a statement on its website, according to the outlet. The statement also read: “The DEI 2.0 Strategic Plan, the umbrella strategy for schools, colleges and units, will be discontinued, along with DEI 2.0 unit plans, related programming, progress reporting, training and funding. Individual leads, who have supported DEI efforts in schools, colleges and units, will refocus their full effort on their core...
President Trump is back on his trade war wave — and this time, it’s rolling straight through the auto industry. With a fresh round of 25% tariffs on cars and auto parts set to take effect on April 3, people from the auto industry, from C-suites to dealership floors, are bracing for the impact. The administration says it’s about protecting national security and strengthening the U.S. manufacturing base. But if you’re thinking about buying a car this year, or if your job has anything to do with auto production, here’s the truth: You may be paying more, waiting longer, and dealing with fewer options. And that’s just the beginning. Why The White House Is Saying This Is Necessary According to an official statement from the White House, these tariffs on cars are aimed at keeping America safe. The administration is emphasizing that too many imports are “undermining” the “domestic industrial base” and weakening the U.S. supply chain. The idea is to hit foreign-made cars and parts with a 25%...
A directory listing Black doctors has been sued. The Black Doctors Directory offers a comprehensive list of Black doctors in southeastern Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey. Its website mentions that the directory covers specialties such as family medicine, allergy and immunology, neurology, gynecology, and hematology, and highlights doctors who provide high-quality and culturally competent care . “Racial health disparities contribute to poorer outcomes for Black residents, regardless of their education, income, or insurance. Research shows that racial congruence in healthcare—when patients are treated by doctors who share their race—improves outcomes for African American patients,” a statement on the directory’s webpage reads. The directory was launched by Pennsylvania’s only Black talk radio station, WURD Radio, and is presented through a partnership between Penn Medicine and the Consortium of DEI Health Educators. However, the directory is now facing legal scrutiny due to a...
JPMorgan Chase is altering the name of what was formerly its DEI program. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, JPMorgan Chase seemingly positioned itself with the stance that it would uphold diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts despite pressures from the National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC), a conservative nonprofit organization. There has been a sweeping shift with many companies aligning themselves with policies from President Donald Trump’s administration, which has dismantled DEI programs and initiatives in the federal government through executive orders. “Bring them on,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January 2025. “We are going to continue to reach out to the Black community, the Hispanic community, the LGBT community , the veterans community.” The following month, JPMorgan Chase joined companies such as Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America in removing or toning down language...