Home Depot Extends Civil Rights to Gays, So the (Anti-) American Family Association Shouts: "Boycott"

BILL BERKOWITZ FOR BUZZFLASH

Imagine if some fifty years ago, a religious-based organization demanded that corporations across the country stay “neutral” in the battle over civil rights. What could be more simple? All the company would have to do is stay out of the way, and not comment one way or another on the fight for racial justice and equality. Had that organization existed, it would surely have been viewed as a vicious and bigoted group.

These days, there is an organization that is demanding neutrality of corporations. Only this time it is neutrality in the culture wars. The American Family Association is continuing to play the “just stay neutral” card in its persistent attempts to deny the human and civil rights of America’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens.

In a recent OneNewsNow article titled “Patriotism, out! Homosexuality, in!”, reporter Charlie Butts tried to gin up the AFA’s anti-gay boycott of Home Depot by citing a case of a young man fired from the company nearly ten months ago. Butts reported that “Home Depot fired Christian employee Trevor Keezor who wore a[n American flag] button reading ‘One Nation Under God’ to support his country and his 27-year-old brother who is serving in the military in Iraq.

American Family Association (AFA) spokesperson Randy Sharp told OneNewsNow (a news service of the AFA) that: "If you're a Christian or a patriot and you want to wear a patriotic button, that violates the corporate policy -- but if you're a homosexual and you want to wear an apron with pro-gay buttons and homosexual messages, and wear them in pride parades and gay and lesbian film festivals, those are approved by the Home Depot."

A Home Depot spokesman said Keezer, who claims he was fired on October 23 of last year, was fired because he violated the company's dress code. "This associate chose to wear a button that expressed his religious beliefs. The issue is not whether or not we agree with the message on the button," Craig Fishel said. "That's not our place to say, which is exactly why we have a blanket policy, which is long-standing and well-communicated to our associates, that only company-provided pins and badges can be worn on our aprons."

(According to several news reports, Kara Skorupa, Trevor Keezer’s lawyer has filed suit against Home Depot over their treatment of Keezer.  Skorupa explained: “There are federal and state laws that protect against religious discrimination.  It’s not like he was out in the aisles preaching to people.” Skorupa noted that the slogan on Keezer’s pin is “part of our country and historical fabric.”) 

The American Family Association claimed that “Dozens of homosexual employees participated in Home Depot-sponsored gay pride parades and festivals. Many employees wore numerous buttons on their aprons promoting homosexuality. The Home Depot defended them by saying homosexual employees will not be prohibited “in any way” when it comes to what they do and wear."

On July 21, the AFA launched a boycott of Home Depot, maintaining that “For several years, The Home Depot has given its financial and corporate support to open displays of homosexual activism on main streets in America's towns. And, it says it will continue to do so!.”

“The worst offense is that Home Depot has set up kids’ workshops at these gay-pride festivals," the AFA's director of special projects told WorldNetDaily’s Chelsea Shilling in late June. "These are events that have loud, boisterous homosexual activists making their voices heard – and Home Depot is putting money behind setting up kids' booths at these kinds of events."

The AFA’s Randy Sharp pointed out that the AFA is “asking people to boycott Home Depot, [first] because they have an unfair policy, … [and secondly] because they support homosexuality on 'Main Street America.' They support the homosexual agenda and the promotion of this dangerous and unhealthy lifestyle."

At the AFA website, under the headline “The Home Depot promotes the homosexual agenda,” the organization lays out its reasoning:

“For several years, The Home Depot has given its financial and corporate support to open displays of homosexual activism on main streets in America's towns.

“Rather than remain neutral in the culture war, The Home Depot has chosen to sponsor and participate in numerous gay pride parades and festivals. Most grievous is The Home Depot's deliberately exposing small children to lascivious displays of sexual conduct by homosexuals and cross-dressers, which are a common occurrence at these events.

“Judge for yourself by reviewing the photos below, taken during recent homosexual events sponsored by The Home Depot. Should The Home Depot be helping advance the homosexual agenda? And more importantly, will you choose to boycott The Home Depot?

“The goal of every homosexual organization supported by The Home Depot is to get homosexual marriage legalized. The information below provides just a glimpse of how broad The Home Depot's support for the homosexual movement is.”

The AFA also claims that “The Home Depot … [has a] track record of support for the homosexual agenda, including homosexual marriage and exposing young children to gay celebrations in public.” According to the AFA, “In June 2010, The Home Depot set up a ‘Kids Workshop’ as a vendor at the Southern Maine Pride Festival and parade”; “In 2009, The Home Depot gave over $5,000 to be a major sponsor of the Nashville Gay Pride Festival. It also sponsored parades in Atlanta, Kansas City, Portland and San Diego”; “The Home DepotThe Home Depot sponsored the Durham Pride Weekend with a kid's workshop and parade march. The events include ‘massages for couples’ and ‘Drag Shows’"; “As early as 2005, The Home Depot placed a full-page ad in the Out & Equal homosexual workplace conference program guide.” offers insurance benefits that cover sex-changes operations for employees. That insurance also extends to same-sex partners of homosexual employees, proving The Home Depot considers gay couples as ‘married.’"

Tim Wildmon, president of the AFA, is urging supporters to take the following actions:

1. Sign the Boycott Pledge at BoycottTheHomeDepot.com.

2. Call your local store manager. Let him know that you will not be shopping in his store until the company stops supporting the homosexual agenda. You can find his number here. (click "Store Finder").

3. Print the paper petition and distribute it at Sunday School and church.

4. Extremely important! Post this alert to your facebook page (link above) and encourage others to join the boycott!

It is doubtful that the AFA’s boycott of The Home Depot, and/or its recently announced boycott of Sears, will be successful. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hatewatch Project, “Bob Witeck, CEO of Witeck Combs Communications, which specializes in marketing to gay consumers, said most anti-gay organizations have abandoned consumer boycotts as a strategy for a simple reason: They haven’t worked. Few other religious-right or anti-gay organizations have joined AFA’s call.”

“To the best of my knowledge, no corporation has evidenced any drop or loss of revenue from boycotts of this sort,” Witeck told Hatewatch. Hatewatch noted that “the extent they are still used, the primary goal seems to be assuring the boycotting organization’s base that their contributions are making a difference, he said. ‘You take a cause, you do it, then you declare victory and then everyone believes their money was well-invested.’”

The real effect of anti-gay boycotts, is like listening to “one hand clapping.” Said Witeck. “They really don’t change corporate behaviors.”