Facing a maelstrom of criticism over allegations it caved in to conservative Christians, Ford Motor Company has agreed to meet with national LGBT groups over the company’s decision to pull advertising from the gay media.
The meeting will take place on Monday, Rita Sklar, the spokesperson for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, told 365Gay.com.
Following Ford’s announcement that it was dropping ads in the gay media for its Land Rover and Jaguar lines the American Family Association declared victory and said it was ending its threatened boycott.
The AFA said the Ford decision was made following a meeting between it and the company at Ford headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan.
Ford claims that the decision to cut back on advertising and the AFA meeting were not related but the company did not dispute the conservative group’s interpretation of the meeting…
The disparity between the AFA and Ford over the real reason for the advertising decision and the timing of the announcements by the two led 19 LGBT civil rights groups to demand an immediate meeting with Ford.
“If there is an agreement with AFA, we expect Ford to disavow it,” the groups said in a joint statement.
