McDonald's announced on Monday that it would end several of its programs aimed at boosting diversity, equity, and inclusion, much to the delight of right-wingers who have long derided DEI initiatives as discriminatory and "woke."
In a statement, the fast food giant affirmed its commitment to inclusion but stated it would no longer require suppliers to commit to DEI targets, would stop setting "aspirational representation goals," and would not participate in external surveys measuring corporate diversity.
The company also said it's rebranding its diversity team to the "Global Inclusion Team."
In the same statement, McDonald's highlighted that 30% of its U.S. leaders came from "underrepresented groups" and that it had "achieved gender pay equity at all levels," adding that the company remains committed to "building a diverse employee, Registered Applicant and supplier pipeline and taking seriously our commitment to pay equity."
Still, the company's shift away from certain DEI practices is being widely lauded by right-wingers online.
"McDonald’s hires President Trump for one day and they put an end to their woke bullshit," joked one person on X. "Coincidence? I think not."
"Guess they saw the light after a former fry cook worked there," echoed someone else of President-elect Donald Trump's campaign trail stop to work a McDonald's drive-thru and fryer.
"That's McSmart!" praised one person.
"Our campaigns are so effective that we’re getting the biggest companies on earth to change their policies without me even posting a story exposing their woke policies first," posted right-winger influencer Robby Starbuck, who has long railed against DEI and runs a tip line aimed at exposing DEI and bringing "sanity back to corporate America."
Starbuck has claimed credit for firms like John Deere, Walmart, Lowe's, and others changing their diversity problems.
"The era of wokeness is dying right in front of our eyes," Starbuck added. "The landscape of corporate America is quickly shifting to sanity and neutrality. We are the trend, not the anomaly anymore."
Another right-wing X influencer concluded that it "looks like the golden arches finally figured out what most Americans already knew - you can't flip burgers with quotas," adding that even with the stated commitment to inclusion, "the message is clear: Merit beats mandates. Guess serving everyone means hiring the best, not checking boxes."
Celebrated another influencer: "WOKE IS DEAD."
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