Levi Strauss & Co.
Woke capitalism is alive and well.
Don’t be fooled by American companies’ public statements suggesting they’re abandoning identity-based diversity, equity and inclusion policies in favor of merit and diversity of thought.
I’m here to prove it: I’ve been canceled. Again.
This time, bounced from a conference boasting a theme of “breaking down walls.”
Five months ago, Peer 150, a networking group for top human resources executives, asked me to speak at one of its events.
I was pleasantly surprised: I’m pretty well known at this point as being aggressively non-woke.
In 2020, I was the only C-suite executive in a major Fortune 1000 company to push back against lockdowns and school closures during the pandemic.
I resigned from Levi’s, a company I’d worked in for 23 years. And then I was banished from all of corporate America for my disobedience.
When I went on to interview for big jobs at big companies in 2023, I was told I’d need to apologize for my stance — despite having been proven absolutely right about school closures being harmful to the nation’s most disadvantaged children.
I went public, decrying woke capitalism for its harmful stifling of creativity and innovation as it smothers speech.
And I started my own company, XX-XY Athletics, the only brand of activewear standing up for the protection of women’s sports. That’s not helping me get myself un-canceled.
So the invitation to air my heterodox views at such a mainstream conference was shocking — but a hopeful sign of change.
The invitation-only Peer 150 conference brings together 800 HR leaders from companies like NBC, Ikea, REI and Universal Music Group to listen to experts’ presentations and discuss pressing corporate issues.
The event, set for Portland, Ore., trumpeted that it would “welcom[e] all walks of life with open arms,” under the banner “Keep Portland Weird.”
“Our weird is about inclusiveness,” the conference website proclaims.
“You do realize this crowd might boo me out of the place??” was my initial response to the organizer.
“More like a possible standing ovation when we are done!!!” he wrote back.
So I accepted, and after multiple planning calls we outlined my presentation: a question-and-answer session called “Unfiltered — Championing Performance, Merit and the Power of Diverse Thought.”
Apparently, diverse thoughts are triggering to this audience.
Last week I received a call from a Peer 150 co-founder.
I’ll paraphrase: Since going live with your name on the conference agenda, he said, we’ve gotten complaints.
Some members said they won’t come. Some threatened to cancel their memberships. Some even suggested they’d pull their companies’ sponsorship of the event.
“I warned you,” I said.
I haven’t decided yet, he said.
On Tuesday, I got his cowardly email canceling my appearance.
“While we always aim to push conversations forward, we also recognize that our responsibility is to create a space where people feel valued and supported,” he wrote. “I just don’t feel like Portland is quite ready for you.”
“Again, I feel horrible and personally think the discussion would be very insightful, however I also feel as though we need to support our community.”
“Support our community.” “Valued and supported.”
These people are spineless.
They pretend to champion diversity of all sorts, but they can’t handle even being in a room with someone who disagrees with them. On anything.
And they see it as “supportive” to allow members to insist on shunning people like me.
The tyrannical minority continues to bully everyone else into silence — manufacturing a fake consensus.
Peer 150’s co-founder could have chosen a different path.
“I understand you disagree with some of her views,” he could have told the complainers. “But let’s have the hard conversations. How can we talk about diversity of thought if we won’t even listen to a person who thinks differently than us?”
He didn’t. He caved.
So many CEOs write to me and say some version of, “I agree with you, but I can’t say it because it will harm my business. I’m the breadwinner.”
I’ve got news for them: So am I.
I have no patience for these weaklings.
They can’t take the smallest stand within their own companies — that they run!
They can’t stomach the tiniest amount of heat or pushback.
You either believe in a culture of free speech, or you don’t. You either have principles, or you don’t.
Wokeism is alive and well in corporate America — because cowards remain silent.
Jennifer Sey is founder and CEO of XX-XY Athletics.