Conservatives accuse Kellogg’s of “sexualizing its products” by selling RuPaul Cheez-Its

The far-right organization America First Legal – founded by former Donald Trump advisor Stephen Miller – filed a complaint against the Kellogg’s food company for supporting employment diversity and then went on a tirade on Twitter saying that Kellogg’s tried to “politicize and sexualize its products” to “advance an extreme social agenda.”

The letter sent to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) accuses Kellogg’s of discriminating against white male employees in violation of federal law. The letter doesn’t cite any instances of paying men less for equal work or refusing to hire white employees and instead focuses on some of the company’s diversity initiatives, which include a development program for “racially underrepresented talent” and its “Chef in Residence” program, which is a fellowship for Black chefs.

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The letter asks for the EEOC to investigate Kellogg’s for its “discriminatory” practices.

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On Twitter, America First Legal went on a tirade about Kellogg’s being too LGBTQ+-friendly, accusing the company of “disdain and disregard for the company’s shareholders” by marketing to LGBTQ+ customers. The group cited Kellogg’s “Together with Pride” cereal, which was available in limited markets in 2021 and 2022, and said that the company was “using iconic Kellogg’s cereal characters to advance an extreme social agenda.”

The group also complained about RuPaul appearing on the cover of a box of Cheez-It crackers last year, as well as “NEON Pink Block Party Lemonade Pop-Tarts” that had a rainbow flag on the box and the fact that transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney had her picture taken with Tony the Tiger at the Tony Awards this year.

“Kellogg’s is yet another big corporation that will break the law and hurt its shareholders’ interests to serve the twisted woke ideology of its officers and directors; like Disney, Budweiser, and Target, Kellogg’s management has shown nothing but contempt and disdain for American families and American workers,” the group said.

/12 Despite the immense trust that hard-working American mothers and fathers have placed in Kellogg’s, management has discarded the Company’s long-held family-friendly marketing approach to politicize and sexualize its products.

For example, to target children. Keep reading…

— America First Legal (@America1stLegal) August 9, 2023

/14 In September 2022, management released a limited-edition Cheez-It® boxes featuring drag queen RuPaul and Jersey Shore star “Snooki.” pic.twitter.com/UASFqa3FMe

— America First Legal (@America1stLegal) August 9, 2023

/16 In June 2023, Tony the Tiger® posed for photographers linking elbows with the controversial transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney at the 76th Annual Tony Awards in New York City.

By this point, management knew or should have known that Mulvaney’s association with Bud Light… pic.twitter.com/VKz5FwyFTI

— America First Legal (@America1stLegal) August 9, 2023

/17 Kellogg’s is yet another big corporation that will break the law and hurt its shareholders’ interests to serve the twisted woke ideology of its officers and directors; like Disney, Budweiser, and Target, Kellogg’s management has shown nothing but contempt and disdain for…

— America First Legal (@America1stLegal) August 9, 2023

Earlier this week, America First Legal filed a lawsuit against Target over the store’s Pride displays on behalf of a small investor in the retail chain, saying that the company had lost some profits when some conservatives attacked the chain for selling rainbow onesies and therefore violated the Securities Exchange Act by not protecting shareholder value.

The lawsuit is part of a larger strategy intended to scare corporations out of marketing to LGBTQ+ people with litigation. The strategy rests on a theory that assumes that any marketing towards LGBTQ+ people costs a company money as conservatives boycott the company and that companies only market to LGBTQ+ people because the company’s leadership “‘bent the knee’ to serve woke elites,” in the words of America First Legal.

Last month, seven GOP state attorneys general sent a letter to Target telling them that its “Satanist-Inspired” merchandise was illegally putting investors’ rents at risk because the Pride displays might have cost the company some business. Target was not selling items made by Satanists and the letter cited several internet myths about Target’s Pride displays.

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