NASCAR, Other Companies Ban White Job Applicants

Despite NASCAR’s claims about being an equal opportunity employer, their “Diversity Internship” has officially banned white people from applying.

The job listing states, “We seek to attract and retain the best qualified people available. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race [or] color.” Yet, according to The Daily Wire, “The first bullet point listed under the heading ‘Program Requirements’ reads: ‘Be a member of one or more of the following races/ethnic minority classifications: Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Latino or Hispanic, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.’” Notably, the required races do not include white/Caucasian.

Many consider NASCAR a woke company, especially on account of their actions in recent years. In 2022, they publicly apologized to the LGBT community for Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s (R) attendance at a race. In August of this year, a NASCAR driver was suspended for “liking” a George Floyd meme on Instagram.

In response to the wave of questionable decisions made by NASCAR, many have called for Bud Light-style boycotts to show the fanbase’s disapproval.

In light of NASCAR’s behavior, The Daily Wire highlighted multiple companies who have excluded whites and, in some cases, Asians, from participating in career advancement training programs, internships, and employment. These companies include Best Buy, Liberty Mutual, US Bank, and Bayer Pharmaceuticals. In addition, Voya Investment Management forced applicants to “self-identify” as a minority in order to be involved in its programs.

George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia School of Law Professor David Bernstein told The Daily Wire that NASCAR seems to be violating Title VIII, as well as the 1866 Civil Rights Act. As Bernstein put it, the program is “blatantly illegal.”

All of this has led the attorneys general from 13 different states to send a letter warning these companies about the “serious legal consequences” they are likely to face if they exclude certain races and ethnicities from participating in their corporate programs. They state: “We, the undersigned Attorneys General of 13 States, write to remind you of your obligations as an employer under federal and state law to refrain from discriminating on the basis of race, whether under the label of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ or otherwise.”

They continued, “Treating people differently because of the color of their skin, even for benign purposes, is unlawful and wrong. Companies that engage in racial discrimination should and will face serious legal consequences.”

Commenting on the slippery slope of any form of racial discrimination, FRC Senior Fellow for Biblical Worldview and Strategic Engagement Joseph Backholm told The Washington Stand, “Once you reject the idea that everyone is equal, and people are either oppressors or one of the oppressed based on your group identity, you embrace unequal treatment of individuals.” He added, “NASCAR is just helping us see where their logic leads.”

“We all want individuals to be treated equally,” Backholm stated, “but it doesn’t make sense to try to end racism by being racist.” He continued by sharing how, despite their attempt to mask decisions as “good intentions,” their approach will never solve any problems. “It just makes them feel better for a moment because they are discriminating against people it is apparently okay to discriminate against,” Backholm said. “Just as you cannot stop hate with more hate, you cannot stop racism with different racism.”

AUTHOR

Sarah Holliday

EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2023 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

---