{"id":1983864,"date":"2023-07-27T05:16:02","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T09:16:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/starbucks-hired-eric-holder-to-conduct-a-civil-rights-audit-the-policies-he-blessed-got-the-coffee-maker-sued\/"},"modified":"2023-07-27T05:25:55","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T09:25:55","slug":"starbucks-hired-eric-holder-to-conduct-a-civil-rights-audit-the-policies-he-blessed-got-the-coffee-maker-sued","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/starbucks-hired-eric-holder-to-conduct-a-civil-rights-audit-the-policies-he-blessed-got-the-coffee-maker-sued\/","title":{"rendered":"Starbucks hired Eric Holder for a &#8216;Civil Rights Audit,&#8217; but his approved policies led to lawsuits against the coffee maker."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">40<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fstarbucks-hired-eric-holder-to-conduct-a-civil-rights-audit-the-policies-he-blessed-got-the-coffee-maker-sued%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1983864&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div>\n<h2>Starbucks&#8217; Diversity Initiatives: A \u2063Closer Look<\/h2>\n<blockquote>\n<p>It \u200bwas 2018, two years before the tidal\u200d wave of diversity initiatives unleashed by George Floyd\u2019s death,\u2062 and Starbucks needed a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ap-chief-takes-part-in-olympic-promo-hosted-by-ccp-propaganda-department\/\" title=\"AP Chief Takes Part in Olympic Promo Hosted by CCP Propaganda Department\">public relations win<\/a>. \u200dThe coffee giant was under fire after an employee at \u200done \u200cof\u2062 its \u200cstores mistakenly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/04\/15\/us\/starbucks-philadelphia-black-men-arrest.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/04\/15\/us\/starbucks-philadelphia-black-men-arrest.html&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw3_Ye18Tj5qXllmimwPfMDu\">called\u2064 the\u200d police<\/a> on\u2062 two\u2063 black men, prompting the company to\u200c announce a &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/stories.starbucks.com\/press\/2018\/starbucks-shares-further-details-on-anti-bias-training-efforts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">multiphase\u2063 effort<\/a>&#8221; to\u200b become &#8220;more diverse, equitable, and inclusive.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Part of that effort was \u200ca series of &#8220;civil rights assessments&#8221; conducted by Covington &#038; Burling, one\u2063 of the <a href=\"https:\/\/legacy.vault.com\/company-profiles\/law\/covington-burling-llp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/legacy.vault.com\/company-profiles\/law\/covington-burling-llp&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0pFlggHUzgl5qT-lQRXHce\">top\u2063 white shoe law firms<\/a> in Washington, D.C., \u200dunder the leadership of former attorney general Eric Holder, a senior \u200dcounsel at the firm.<\/p>\n<p>Holder\u2014who has charged <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.com\/nationallawjournal\/2021\/04\/16\/covingtons-eric-holder-bills-at-2295-hourly-new-legal-services-contract-shows\/?slreturn=20230626151523\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">as much as $2,295\u200d an hour for such work<\/a>\u2014issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/stories.starbucks.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Starbucks-2021-Civil-Rights-Assessment.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/stories.starbucks.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Starbucks-2021-Civil-Rights-Assessment.pdf&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0DU8d9ttwEm136ElB6iHjz\">final report<\/a> in 2021\u2062 that outlined the\u2063 steps Starbucks had taken to promote &#8220;equity.&#8221; They included tying\u200b executive \u2062pay to diversity targets, setting spending goals for &#8220;diverse \u200csuppliers,&#8221; and launching a mentorship\u200d program for &#8220;BIPOC&#8221; employees, which Holder pressed the company to \u200cexpand. Each initiative, he wrote, demonstrated the \u2063coffee maker\u2019s &#8220;commitment to civil rights and equal treatment.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>But one year\u200b later, Starbucks\u200b was fending off a <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/can-shareholders-challenge-corporate-discrimination-a-conservative-nonprofit-is-about-to-find-out\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/can-shareholders-challenge-corporate-discrimination-a-conservative-nonprofit-is-about-to-find-out\/&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw1XMKhxUrpLbNIbq73HjKr5\">civil\u2064 rights lawsuit<\/a> over precisely the programs Holder had blessed. The lawsuit, which\u200b is still ongoing and was filed last August by \u2062the National Center for Public Policy Research, \u2062a conservative\u2062 nonprofit\u200b that is\u200c also a Starbucks shareholder, argued that the\u2062 programs violate non-discrimination laws as well as the \u200ccompany\u2019s fiduciary\u2063 duties. Such claims may have come as\u2062 a\u200d surprise\u200b to Starbucks executives: \u200dAt no point did \u200dHolder\u2019s report address the legality \u200bof the policies at issue.<\/p>\n<p>When a law firm\u2019s &#8220;civil \u200crights&#8221; advice gets its client sued for race discrimination, one might expect \u2064the\u2064 firm\u200c to dispense less of that advice, or at least to warn other clients\u200d about the risk of taking it. But Covington, which represents some of\u200b the largest companies in the world,\u200c did neither.<\/p>\n<p>Through its &#8220;racial equity audit&#8221; practice,\u2062 the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/starbucks-hired-eric-holder-to-conduct-a-civil-rights-audit-the-policies-he-blessed-got-the-coffee-maker-sued\/\" title=\"Starbucks hired Eric Holder for a 'Civil Rights Audit,' but his approved policies led to lawsuits against the coffee maker.\">firm continued rubber stamping race-based initiatives<\/a> for its clients, \u2063including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blackrock.com\/corporate\/literature\/fact-sheet\/dei-strategy-progress.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.blackrock.com\/corporate\/literature\/fact-sheet\/dei-strategy-progress.pdf&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw1tyvxXKMlRW8uaKdBjrGoS\">BlackRock<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.citigroup.com\/rcs\/citigpa\/storage\/public\/2022-audit-results.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.citigroup.com\/rcs\/citigpa\/storage\/public\/2022-audit-results.pdf&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw24ll4GYMG_MaRSXGsuOeX5\">Citigroup<\/a>, \u200dand <a href=\"https:\/\/www.verizon.com\/about\/sites\/default\/files\/verizon-covington-report-2023.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.verizon.com\/about\/sites\/default\/files\/verizon-covington-report-2023.pdf&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw2-bPRJVzxl08v954k84THz\">Verizon<\/a>. Such practices have become common in recent years as c-suites, often\u2064 under shareholder pressure, seek third-party validation of their diversity efforts, something top law\u2063 firms have been more than happy to provide.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wilmerhale.com\/en\/solutions\/anti-discrimination\/anti-discrimination-investigations-workplace-culture-reviews-and-equity-audits\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.wilmerhale.com\/en\/solutions\/anti-discrimination\/anti-discrimination-investigations-workplace-culture-reviews-and-equity-audits&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0p5z2PpJe0LTnuFb7bGVbA\">WilmerHale<\/a>, \u2063 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.skadden.com\/capabilities\/practices\/white-collar-defense-and-investigations\/cc\/workplace-culture-and-civil-rights-racial-equity-audits\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.skadden.com\/capabilities\/practices\/white-collar-defense-and-investigations\/cc\/workplace-culture-and-civil-rights-racial-equity-audits&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0cFnqt5wQUd_fFWqmNbRuL\">Skadden \u2064Arps<\/a>, and \u200c <a href=\"https:\/\/www.paulweiss.com\/about-the-firm\/firm-news\/paul-weiss-launches-dedicated-civil-rights-and-racial-equity-audit-practice?id=43465\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.paulweiss.com\/about-the-firm\/firm-news\/paul-weiss-launches-dedicated-civil-rights-and-racial-equity-audit-practice?id%3D43465&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw1gX9p9cduTqY1byb8d5S8Y\">Paul Weiss<\/a> are \u200bjust some of the legal heavyweights that\u2062 now offer &#8220;civil rights audits&#8221;\u2014part of their growing portfolio \u2064of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) services\u2014which they claim will keep clients \u2062out of\u200d trouble. &#8220;Our audits can address potential issues of bias and discrimination before legal risks emerge,&#8221; Skadden\u2063 Arps\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.skadden.com\/capabilities\/practices\/white-collar-defense-and-investigations\/cc\/workplace-culture-and-civil-rights-racial-equity-audits\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.skadden.com\/capabilities\/practices\/white-collar-defense-and-investigations\/cc\/workplace-culture-and-civil-rights-racial-equity-audits&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0cFnqt5wQUd_fFWqmNbRuL\">audit \u200bpractice<\/a> states.<\/p>\n<p>But critics say \u200cthe assessments have\u200d exposed clients to the very risks they\u2019re meant to alleviate.\u200d Covington\u2019s audits alone endorse a plethora of \u2063programs many\u2062 lawyers, including current \u2064and \u200dformer government officials, say are illegal, from a minorities-only scholarship\u200b at BlackRock to a bonus scheme\u200d linking executive pay to \u200cdiversity targets at Verizon.<\/p>\n<p>These programs &#8220;are lawsuits\u200b waiting to happen,&#8221; said Noah Peters, the former solicitor\u200c of the\u2062 Federal Labor Relations \u200dAuthority, who has represented numerous government employees\u200d in discrimination lawsuits.<\/p>\n<p>Some conservative groups are working to ensure the wait won\u2019t be long.\u2063 In April the law firm America First Legal filed a complaint against BlackRock with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, an\u2062 agency that enforces workplace discrimination laws, alleging that its race-based scholarship violated the Civil Rights Act.<\/p>\n<p>At least \u200cone\u2063 of\u200d that agency\u2019s five commissioners seems to agree: Andrea Lucas, who was appointed\u2063 in 2020 by former president\u200c Donald Trump,\u200d said that\u2062 while she could only speak hypothetically, the \u200dkinds\u200c of\u2064 programs Covington\u2063 blessed are on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-cuomo-aide-used-mta-official-to-secretly-record-sexual-harassment-accuser\/\" title=\"Report: Cuomo Aide Used MTA Official to Secretly Record Sexual Harassment Accuser\">thin legal ice<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Race-restricted internships, fellowships, and\u200b mentorship programs are &#8220;generally unlawful,&#8221; she \u2064said, &#8220;including programs where participants receive offers for\u200d a company\u2019s \u200cgeneral\u2064 internship program (open to all applicants) but\u200c also receive\u200c a unique benefit \u200clike an expedited \u2063interview \u2062process&#8221; or &#8220;additional compensation beyond what other interns receive.&#8221; Those criteria describe almost verbatim the <a href=\"https:\/\/rockthestreetwallstreet.com\/job\/blackrock-founders-scholarship\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rockthestreetwallstreet.com\/job\/blackrock-founders-scholarship\/&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw3vC12EGGnEbMZclyrl232H\">BlackRock Founders Scholarship<\/a>\u2014established before\u2064 Covington\u2019s \u2062audit \u200cand praised therein\u2014which \u2064offers\u2063 &#8220;diverse&#8221; internship applicants an &#8220;accelerated interview process&#8221;\u200b and an award of \u200d$20,000.<\/p>\n<p>As for programs\u2062 tying \u200cexecutive pay\u200c to \u200dracial targets, &#8220;the more a company seeks to ensure diversity \u2018goals\u2019 are achieved through significant\u2064 financial pressure, the higher the risk that\u2063 a court might find that\u2062 such \u2018goals\u2019 actually are unlawful\u2062 quotas,&#8221; Lucas said.<\/p>\n<p>Such\u200b policies\u2064 were being challenged even before the Supreme Court struck down \u2064race-based college \u200dadmissions. Now, as companies brace for an \u2064onslaught of\u200b litigation in the \u2063wake of that ruling,\u200c they may find that \u2062their \u200dmost legally vulnerable programs\u2062 trace back not just to \u2062diversity officers but \u200cto some of the most prominent lawyers \u2063in the country\u2014retained for the express purpose of \u200dreducing liability.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It\u2019s been surreal to \u200dsee \u200claw firms \u2062encouraging clients to pursue these policies, \u200coften in what seems like open defiance of the Civil \u2064Rights Act,&#8221; said Jonathan Berry, the managing partner\u200c at Boyden Gray \u2063&#038; Associates.<\/p>\n<p>For Adam Mortara, \u200bwho represented the plaintiffs in \u2064the case that outlawed affirmative\u2064 action in college admissions, the\u200b race-based bonus schemes were especially shocking.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I\u2019m stunned that\u200c a law \u200bfirm \u2062would\u2064 have \u2064counseled any company to \u2064do this,&#8221; he told the <em>Washington <\/em><em>Free Beacon<\/em>. &#8220;What could \u2063possibly be the justification?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Covington &#038; Burling did not respond to requests\u2062 for comment.<\/p>\n<p>Firms have made\u2064 these recommendations with full knowledge of the legal \u200cheadwinds facing them. It was one \u2062thing for Relman Colfax, <span id=\"m_4714252719687954730docs-internal-guid-03949548-7fff-dd7c-3123-c882186d88d9\">which <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.relmanlaw.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.relmanlaw.com\/&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw1ers_2hi88e0ivKOGPLg-T\">specializes in civil rights law<\/a>, to tell Facebook in a <a href=\"https:\/\/about.fb.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Civil-Rights-Audit-Final-Report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/about.fb.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Civil-Rights-Audit-Final-Report.pdf&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw3GEYw0D7woJ1M5W3chzcaA\">2020 audit<\/a> \u2063that\u2063 it should tie manager pay \u200bto\u200b &#8220;diversity metrics&#8221; before\u2062 such programs\u200d were facing high-profile legal challenges. It was another \u200cfor Covington to \u200dtell BlackRock and Verizon to expand their own versions of that policy this April, eight months after Starbucks had\u200d been \u2064sued for doing the same thing.<\/p>\n<p>In a March <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/technology\/2023\/03\/03\/google-civil-rights-audit\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/technology\/2023\/03\/03\/google-civil-rights-audit\/&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714607000&#038;usg=AOvVaw2LneoE5Hh6WkbmbeLdgzV_\">audit<\/a> of Google, Wilmerhale likewise \u2064praised the tech giant\u2019s special grants for minority start-up founders\u2014programs nearly\u200b identical to an\u200b initiative that got Amazon <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/amazon-faces-suit-over-10k-offer-made-exclusively-to-black-latinx-and-native-american-entrepreneurs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/amazon-faces-suit-over-10k-offer-made-exclusively-to-black-latinx-and-native-american-entrepreneurs\/&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714608000&#038;usg=AOvVaw25c5eQjyCHL0E8VgRpvwsO\">hit with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/psaki-defends-treasury-secretary-janet-yellen-for-taking-money-from-citadel-wont-commit-to-recusal-in-gamestop-scandal-video\/\" title=\"Psaki Defends Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen For Taking Money From Citadel \u2013 Won\u2019t Commit to Recusal in GameStop Scandal (VIDEO)\">class action lawsuit<\/a><\/a> last year.<\/p>\n<p>WilmerHale, Google, Relman Colfax, BlackRock, Verizon, and Meta, Facebook\u2019s parent company, did\u200d not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n<p>Firms have also\u2062 pushed for racial preferences\u2064 in investment and\u200d lending practices, \u2063where efforts to close the \u2063racial wealth gap\u2062 could \u200bsoon face \u2063legal challenges of their \u2064own.\u200b Covington blessed a BlackRock index fund that \u2063invests only\u200b in companies run by or\u200b for people of color\u2014&#8221;probably\u200d illegal,&#8221; \u2064Mortara said\u2014as well as a Citigroup program that \u200dgives &#8220;preferential \u200bfinancing&#8221; to minority housing developers.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;That\u2019s absolutely unlawful\u200d under \u200bfair credit and housing laws,&#8221; Reed Rubinstein, the director of\u2062 oversight and investigations\u2064 at America First Legal, \u200dsaid \u2062of the \u200cCitigroup program. &#8220;It could open them up to massive potential liability.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Citigroup declined to comment.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200b focus on finance has given Covington \u200ba golden \u200dopportunity to boost demand for\u2064 its own services. \u2064In its April <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blackrock.com\/corporate\/literature\/fact-sheet\/dei-strategy-progress.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.blackrock.com\/corporate\/literature\/fact-sheet\/dei-strategy-progress.pdf&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714608000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0ZIllBHA-ZRj6GWVZDeuff\">report<\/a> on BlackRock, which\u200b was also led by Holder, Covington \u2064praised \u2062the\u200c asset manager for pushing, via shareholder proxy votes, the very sort \u200dof audits the firm\u2064 conducts.<\/p>\n<p>BlackRock has supported nearly two thirds of proposals\u2062 &#8220;related to racial equity \u2062assessments&#8221; since \u200d2021, Holder \u2063wrote. Even\u200c so, he continued, it should &#8220;strengthen [the] consistency&#8221; of its votes.<\/p>\n<p>There are nonetheless signs that the audits \u2063won\u2019t \u2064be long\u200d for the post-affirmative action world. Senator Tom Cotton \u2064(R., Ark.) <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bloomberglaw.com\/business-and-practice\/sen-cotton-warns-big-law-its-dei-efforts-could-lead-to-lawsuits?utm_source=substack&#038;utm_medium=email\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/news.bloomberglaw.com\/business-and-practice\/sen-cotton-warns-big-law-its-dei-efforts-could-lead-to-lawsuits?utm_source%3Dsubstack%26utm_medium%3Demail&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714608000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0m7-bujKpHcurvL7JIsh4e\">warned<\/a> 51\u200d law firms \u2062this month that Congress\u200b could investigate them for blessing\u200c illegal diversity programs, \u2062a \u200cthreat that followed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/republican-attorneys-general-warn-top-u-s-businesses-over-discrimination-1eb78d29\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/republican-attorneys-general-warn-top-u-s-businesses-over-discrimination-1eb78d29&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714608000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0GcHKBXl6z1BZD8q15TAE-\">demands<\/a> by 13 \u200dRepublican attorneys general for Fortune 100 companies to scrap their race-based\u200b hiring practices.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If you choose not to do so,&#8221; the officials wrote in letters to\u2062 companies, &#8220;know that you will\u2063 be held \u2064accountable.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Covington itself read clients the riot act in\u200d the wake \u200dof the High Court\u2019s \u2063decision, issuing a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cov.com\/en\/news-and-insights\/insights\/2023\/07\/considerations-for-employers-following-the-eeocs-response-to-the-supreme-courts-ruling-on-race-conscious-college-admissions?utm_source=pardot&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=clientalerts&#038;sc_camp=2D3D522D49CB4CE599B743213715F288\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.cov.com\/en\/news-and-insights\/insights\/2023\/07\/considerations-for-employers-following-the-eeocs-response-to-the-supreme-courts-ruling-on-race-conscious-college-admissions?utm_source%3Dpardot%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_campaign%3Dclientalerts%26sc_camp%3D2D3D522D49CB4CE599B743213715F288&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714608000&#038;usg=AOvVaw1UpiXptCySYnD9H2q2Hvv2\">client \u200balert<\/a> that was \u200dfar less \u200dsanguine about racial preferences than \u200dits audits have been. <span id=\"m_4714252719687954730docs-internal-guid-ad2f6f71-7fff-67c5-2a82-b787e57d0a65\">Quoting\u200b an <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/legalindustry\/with-supreme-court-affirmative-action-ruling-its-time-companies-take-hard-look-2023-06-29\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/legalindustry\/with-supreme-court-affirmative-action-ruling-its-time-companies-take-hard-look-2023-06-29\/&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1690477714608000&#038;usg=AOvVaw0_rPPcjUseQJew6dQZ7AaS\">article<\/a> by \u200bLucas\u2014the \u200bEqual Employment Opportunity Commissioner who warned against \u200bthe \u2064sort of policies Holder blessed\u2014the firm encouraged\u2064 employers to \u200c&#8221;take a hard look&#8221; at\u200b their diversity programs.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;\u2018[R]ace-restricted \u200cinternships, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/eeoc-commissioner-on-scotus-ruling-will-lead-to-crackdown-on-esg-dei-programs-in-companies\/\" title=\"EEOC Commissioner predicts crackdown on ESG, DEI programs due to SCOTUS ruling.\">race-restricted mentoring<\/a>, [and] race-focused promotion decisions,\u2019&#8221; Covington said, &#8220;may already \u2063be \u2018violating the law.\u2019&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><em>Editor\u2019s Note: The<\/em> Free Beacon<em> is a Covington &#038; Burling client. The <\/em>Free Beacon<em> has not had \u2063the\u200b firm conduct a \u200cracial \u2063equity audit. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In 2018, Starbucks faced backlash when an employee called the police on two black men. Seeking a positive image, the company announced a &#8220;multiphase effort&#8221; for diversity, preceding the wave of initiatives sparked by George Floyd&#8217;s death two years later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":184,"featured_media":1983865,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[544],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1983864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-free-beacon"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1983864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/184"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1983864"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1983864\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1983865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1983864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1983864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1983864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}