I WORK FOR FORD BUT I DONT AGREE WITH EVERYTHING THAT GOES ON. BELOW IS THE RESPONSE FOR THE BOYCOTT : FOR THE RECORD I STAND FOR TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE VALUES WITH THESE FOLKS
http://florida4marriage.org/LEVITICUS 20:13
Ford's Response to American Family Association's Boycott
Dearborn, Mich., May 31 – [The following statement is attributable to Joe Laymon, Ford Motor Company group vice president, Corporate Human Resources and Labor Affairs, in response to the American Family Association's boycott of Ford products.]
"Ford Motor Company values diversity among all of its constituents. The Company prides itself on strong and clear values – respect for our customers, communities, employees, suppliers and dealers; acceptance of our differences; inclusion of different people with different perspectives; and integrity to always do the right thing. Ford values all people – regardless of their race, religion, gender, sexual orientation and cultural or physical differences. And we are glad to see that this spirit of inclusion is evident in the practices of other automakers who do business in this country as well. It is one of the things that makes us proud to be part of the auto industry."
Go to
http://media.ford.com for news releases and high-resolution photographs.
Q&A
FORD'S RESPONSE TO AMERICAN FAMILY ASSOCIATION'S
BOYCOTT
[Situation: On May 31, the American Family Association launched a boycott against Ford
products and Ford dealers due to the Company's diversity policy and its support of various gay,
lesbian and transgender events. The Company has issued a formal statement in response, which
is attributable to Joe Laymon, group vice president, Corporate Human Resources and Labor
Affairs.]
Main Messages:
Ford Motor Company values diversity among all of its constituents. The Company prides itself on strong
and clear values – respect for our customers, communities, employees, suppliers and dealers; acceptance
of our differences; inclusion of different people with different perspectives; and integrity to always do the
right thing. Ford values all people – regardless of their race, religion, gender, sexual orientation and
cultural or physical differences. And we are glad to see that this spirit of inclusion is evident in the
practices of other automakers who do business in this country as well. It is one of the things that makes
us proud to be part of the auto industry.
Q. Does Ford support homosexual marriage?
A. Ford Motor Company supports diversity, which means being respectful and inclusive,
accepting differences and valuing all people – regardless of their race, religion, gender, sexual
orientation and cultural or physical differences. This simply is our corporate philosophy, not a
stance in any public policy debate.
Q. How does Ford feel about the boycott spearheaded by American Family Association?
A. At Ford, valuing diversity among its various employees, customers, dealers, suppliers, etc.,
is extremely important. The Company believes it is essential to be respectful, inclusive and
accepting of different people with different perspectives. This also includes being respectful of
different opinions.
Go to
http://media.ford.com for news releases and high-resolution photographs.
2
Q. How do you respond to the specific accusations the AFA presents on their Web site?
A. While we do not intend to rebut the AFA on each of the items they raise, there are a couple
of points worth noting:
· The AFA points to the fact that Ford has been on the DiversityInc "Top 50 Companies
for Diversity" list in each of the four years the rankings have been published. That is
true, and we're proud of it.
· The AFA claims that Ford held the first automotive conference aimed at bringing
diversity to the car industry. They claim that diversity is a code word for homosexuality.
Actually, diversity is about being respectful and inclusive of all people – it is much
broader than sexual orientation.
· The AFA points to Ford's 100 percent score on this year's Human Rights Campaign's
Corporate Equality Index. This index is a review of how America's largest companies
treat their lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees, consumers and investors.
We are proud that we're being recognized for treating those constituencies fairly.
Q. Why does Ford offer same-sex domestic partner benefits? You must support
homosexual marriage if you offer those.
A. Providing these benefits does not mean we are taking a stand on this public policy debate.
Rather, it is a matter of fairness to our employees. It represents a business decision that is at the
foundation of offering an inclusive environment.
Q. Does Ford have any internal organizations that support the gay and lesbian lifestyle?
A. Ford has ten Employee Resource Groups available for employee participation. One of
them is Ford Gay, Lesbian, or Transgender Employees (GLOBE). Others include the Ford
Parenting Network, Professional Women's Network, Ford Employees Dealing with DisAbilities,
Ford Chinese Association, Ford Hispanic Network Group, Ford Employees African Ancestry
Network, Ford Asian Indian Association, Ford Interfaith Network and the Middle Eastern
Community at Ford Motor Company.
Q. What role does GLOBE play within the company?
A. As one of ten Employee Resource Groups, GLOBE helps Ford create an inclusive
environment. For example, GLOBE served as a consultant to the company when health care
benefits were extended to same-sex domestic partners.
May 31, 2005 ###
