Delta Condemns Georgia Voter Suppression Law
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a memo to employees on Wednesday, Delta reversed course and took a strong stand against the recently-passed voter suppression law Senate Bill 202 in Georgia, home to its headquarters. The company had been under pressure to condemn the bill as part of a coordinated effort by voting rights groups and other activists to force Georgia-based corporations to take a stand for voting rights in the face of unprecedented suppression efforts by Republicans. Companies that did not condemn the bill, like Coca-Cola, have been the subject of boycott efforts led by Black faith leaders in the Peach State.
After weeks of public pressure, Delta’s CEO Ed Bastian finally came out against the now-passed legislation, writing in the staff memo on Wednesday that the Republican bill is “based on a lie: that there was widespread voter fraud in Georgia in the 2020 elections.” Bastian affirmed that such legislation does not match the values of the company. And perhaps in an attempt to answer for his delay in releasing such a statement, Bastian wrote: “After having time to now fully understand all that is in the bill, coupled with discussions with leaders and employees in the Black community, it’s evident that the bill includes provisions that will make it harder for many underrepresented voters, particularly Black voters, to exercise their constitutional right to elect their representatives. That is wrong,”