The nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy group is taking action against Anheuser-Busch over its handling of the conservative backlash to transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, accusing the multinational beer company of caving to political pressure.
In a May 9 letter shared exclusively with USA TODAY, the Human Rights Campaign informed the Bud Light maker that it has suspended its Corporate Equality Index score – a tool that scores companies on their policies for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer employees.
Companies that receive a 100 score on the index’s four criteria – protections from workplace discrimination, inclusive benefits, inclusive culture inside and outside the workplace and responsible citizenship – receive a “Best Places to Work for LGBTQ+ Equality” seal of approval from the Human Rights Campaign.
Anheuser-Busch, which had a score of 100, has 90 days to respond or the organization will consider docking its score, the Human Rights Campaign told the company in the letter.
Anheuser-Busch did not respond to requests for comment on the Human Rights Campaign’s letter but said it has an employee resource group that supports LGBTQIA+ employees. “Our ERGs are intended to be a safe space for those who identify with a given community and those who wish to be allies,” the company said in an email.
The trouble began last month when Mulvaney posted a video to her Instagram account promoting a Bud Light March Madness contest. The video featured a photo of a promotional Bud Light tallboy with Mulvaney’s face on it.
What followed was a torrent of criticism from the political right, with conservatives calling for boycotts of Bud Light and Kid Rock releasing a video in which he destroyed cases of Bud Light with an assault weapon.
As sales slumped, Anheuser-Busch put two of its executives on leave and issued a statement from its CEO Brendan Whitworth: “We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over beer.”
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Whitworth’s statement prompted a backlash from the LGBTQ community and its allies.
Eric Bloem, HRC’s senior director, programs and corporate advocacy, said Anheuser-Busch backtracking on support for the LGBTQ community in the face of anti-trans and hate-filled rhetoric sends the message to employees, shareholders and customers that it does not stand up for the values of diversity, equity and inclusion it espouses.
Mulvaney, who was targeted by anti-trans abuse, posted about the experience on Instagram: “I think it’s okay to be frustrated with someone and confused, but what I’m really struggling with is the need to dehumanize and to be cruel.”
“Anheuser-Busch had a key moment to really stand up and demonstrate the importance of their values of diversity, equity and inclusion and their response really fell short,” Bloem said.
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Bloem said Anheuser-Busch has not responded to inquiries from the Human Rights Campaign. He hopes the ultimatum from the Human Rights Campaign will jump-start a conversation.
This is not the first time the Human Rights Campaign has suspended a company’s Corporate Equality Index score. It suspended Netflix’s score in connection with that company’s handling of Dave Chappelle’s transphobic remarks in a 2021 stand-up special “The Closer.”
The Bud Light incident comes at a critical moment for LGBTQ rights.
Hundreds of bills targeting LGBTQ people – particularly transgender people – have been introduced by Republican lawmakers in statehouses across the country, seeking to regulate what bathrooms they can use, what medical care they can receive and what sports teams they can play on.
Increasingly corporations are engaging in these social debates, setting up clashes with prominent figures like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who went to war with Disney over its criticism of a state law limiting the instruction of sexual orientation and gender identity in public classrooms.
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By and large, corporations are listening to their employees and customers − and with good reason, Bloem says.
An unprecedented number of Americans identify as LGBTQ – especially younger generations – and an even larger number support LGBTQ rights, a powerful consumer segment that no company can or should ignore, Bloem said.
“As we look at those pressures on businesses, it all comes back down to understanding that the LGBTQ+ community is part of the fabric of our society,” he said. “This is not the first time a business has been tested for supporting the LGBTQ+ community. What remains true is that businesses that do stand up for the community in meaningful ways and really live up to their values of allyship succeed.”
