MAGA fury finds new target — this time it's embodiment of Deep South
The MAGA law group America First Legal (AFL) is suing Cracker Barrel restaurants for alleged discriminatory employment practices over the company's promotion of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), according to The New York Post.
AFL filed complaints Monday with the Tennessee Attorney General and the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC), citing documents and reports alleging the company "maintains illegal DEI frameworks."
The filings also chastised Cracker Barrel, which prides itself on its Southern country theme, for "rebranding its dedicated DEI website to 'Culture and Belonging,' arguing that the name change did not halt Cracker Barrel from using 'diversity' as a proxy for race or sex," the report said.
AFL is against the restaurant's policy of offering "employment benefits only available to employees belonging to certain races or sexes." These include developing Black leaders, promoting Hispanic and Latino culture, and nurturing those in the LGBT and neurodivergent communities.
“Cracker Barrel’s policies openly discriminate against heterosexual, white, and male employees in favor of diverse employees,” according to AFL’s complaint.
Shortly after taking office in January, President Donald Trump issued a series of executive orders targeting diversity programs and gender identity policies in the government as part of his "mandate" to dismantle "woke" culture. The legal challenges began soon thereafter, and continue to wind their way through the courts.
Meanwhile, law firms reported fielding "panicked" calls from chief executives worried that Trump might come after their companies. Some businesses like Mark Zuckerberg's META preemptively canceled its DEI programs to align with the administration's goals. The administration has gone on to target certain law firms and universities for their DEI policies.
According to the Post, "Cracker Barrel did not respond to repeated requests for comment in time for publication."