A large group of black religious leaders representing more than 1,000 churches in Georgia will call to boycott Home Depot on Tuesday, saying the company has fallen short as a good corporate citizen by not publicly denouncing the state’s voting law.
The boycott effort is led by Bishop Reginald Jackson, overseer of all 534 African Methodist Episcopal churches in the state. The coalition of faith leaders initially pushed back boycott efforts to allow Home Depot and other Georgia-based businesses time to respond to the law, as many companies, including Coca-Cola and Delta Air Lines, have voiced opposition to the measure.
“We don’t believe this is simply a political matter,” Jackson told the New York Times. “This is a matter that deals with securing the future of this democracy, and the greatest right in this democracy is the right to vote.”
COCA-COLA AND DELTA ABSENT FROM CORPORATE VOTING RIGHTS STATEMENT AFTER GOP PRESSURE
Republican backers of the law tout it as a measure that makes it “easy to vote but hard to cheat,” as the primary change in voting procedures requires people to list their driver’s license or state identification number on their application for an absentee ballot.
Democrats have largely opposed the law, and President Joe Biden has criticized the measure as “designed to keep people from voting.”
Home Depot has “demonstrated an indifference, a lack of response to the call, not only from clergy but a call from other groups to speak out in opposition to this legislation,” Jackson said.
The hardware store company, headquartered in Georgia, is one of the largest employers in the state. Home Depot spoke out against the measure in March, saying appropriate changes should include extending voting by mail and making it easier for eligible voters to register.
Sara Gorman, a spokeswoman for Home Depot, sent a statement to the Washington Examiner defending the company’s past contributions and efforts to help voting accessibility.
“We believe that all elections should be accessible, fair and secure and support broad voter participation. We’ll continue to work to ensure our associates, both in Georgia and across the country, have the information and resources to vote,” Gorman said March 16.
“For example, we promoted voter participation in the last election through our internal Get Out The Vote initiative, confirming 15,500 voter registrations among our associates,” among other contributions, such as “9,200 plexiglass dividers across Georgia to help meet poll station safety requirements,” she said.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The Washington Examiner reached out to the Sixth Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, which Jackson oversees, but did not immediately receive a response.
