Power to The People

There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.

- Sam Walton

When Wal-Mart said sales were below par on the Black Friday after Thanksgiving, the stock market shuddered and analysts took this as on omen of a weakening economy. What I find amazing is that nothing much was mentioned in the press about the boycott of Wal-Mart - a successful one at that - by some of its regular customers. The lack of press coverage may perhaps be explained by the reason for the boycott: Wal-Mart has become politically correct.

The action alert from the American Family Association arrived sometime in October. It was forwarded to me from a concerned reader who is a former Wal-Mart customer.

The alert read: "You will remember that Wal-Mart asked for, and received, permission to join the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC). The company announced they were giving two large grants to NGLCC. The world's largest retailer was rewarded with a position on the board of NGLCC. Wal-Mart also announced they would give preference to homosexual-owned businesses in purchasing products. Justin Nelson, president of NGLCC, said he expects Wal-Mart to use its influence to pressure suppliers like P&G, Johnson & Johnson, and Gillette to give homosexual businesses preferential treatment. Wal-Mart is also working on a plan to provide domestic-partnership benefits to homosexual employee ‘partners.' The NGLCC is a leading promoter of homosexual marriage."

Janet Baird, a Wal-Mart employee for more than 13 years, tendered her resignation after her brother told her in September that Wal-Mart had joined the NGLCC. She and her husband were among a group of Christians who held a protest rally in front of the store where she worked in Ontario, Ohio. She initiated a boycott in Mansfield, Ohio, and at other stores and sent out releases urging Christians to take a stand and "get the word out because most people are not aware of what is happening."

I'm not sure if her protest spurred the AFA's national action, but one would have to assume that it has worked.

By November 24, the boycott was in full bloom and soon thereafter Wal-Mart was said to have reported its lowest earnings in decades. Wall Street shook and the market stopped rising.

So what's happening at this point? According to the latest announcement from the AFA's chairman and founder, Donald Wildmon, the organization will no longer call for the boycott of Wal-Mart, because the retailer has promised not to contribute to controversial causes.

Its official statement reads: "Wal-Mart will not make corporate contributions to support or oppose highly controversial issues unless they directly relate to our ability to serve our customers. Wal-Mart does not have a position on same sex marriage and we do not give preference to gay or lesbian suppliers. Wal-Mart does have a strong commitment to diversity among our associates and against discrimination everywhere."

Whew, that's a relief for low-income families everywhere who haven't completed their Christmas shopping. What boggles the mind, however, is why Wal-Mart even decided to enter into an arrangement with an organization representing individuals that are very unlikely to shop there in large numbers.

Another instance of the power of consumer influence occurred in Staten Island. The local mall had announced that Santa and his workshop would no longer be located in the center of the mall. They were to be replaced by a Kwanzaa exhibit. Needless to say, Islanders wrote angry letters to the newspapers and to the mall managers and threatened to shop in Woodbridge, N.J. Well, Santa's back in the center.

The gay shopper, though still a minority, commands a higher income than the average family shopper. The gay community is also highly influential, especially here in New York City. The city now plans to make it easier for transgender New Yorkers to switch the sex listed on birth certificates even without undergoing sex-change surgery. Now how great a demand is there for that?

Still, political accommodation to a fraction of the population is not always restricted to the gay community. Consider the ruling of the judge who has deemed America's paper money unfair to the blind. It matters not how costly it would be to change our currency. Now, if machines can distinguish paper money denominations, then wouldn't it be far less expensive to develop a hand-held scanner for the small percentage of the visually impaired? Just asking.

For many years, it has seemed as if majority rule no longer applies. Rather, the tyranny of the minority wreaks its authority through the courts, legal teams, and money. These two examples - Wal-Mart and the Staten Island Mall - should provide hope for those who have only sheer numbers as their defense.

Power to the people.