From PRWeek…
Where Are The Black History Month Campaigns?
News Analysis
Government agencies are canceling “identity months” and many companies are retreating on DEI policies. Meanwhile, brands and their agency partners are refocusing their efforts internally.
By Jess Ruderman
February is Black History Month, but you wouldn’t know it from brands’ marketing and messaging this year.
The commemorative month, established in 1976, has been a celebration of Black American history for decades. Yet recent federal policy changes regarding diversity, equity and inclusion policies and questions about the legality of DEI programs after the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action, are pushing brands and agency partners to go silent this month.
Donald Thompson, CEO and cofounder of The Diversity Movement, which works with clients such as Subaru, Lenovo and Fanatics to help them link DEI initiatives to the bottom line, says his company is seeing a “significant uptick” in clients asking for help managing the Trump administration’s executive orders and the negative narrative around DEI.
He says that brands this year are shifting their celebrations or acknowledgments internally.
“People are looking through a marketing lens. If they pull back on the external promotion of a particular month, what they’re doing is giving themselves the space to then manage things internally,” Thompson says. “People are deciding they don’t want to be on the front lines of the fight, and that’s why people are pulling back.”
Ultimately, corporate America appears to be following the lead of the Trump administration. A January memo from the Defense Department signaled it is canceling “identity months” and celebrations of cultural identity in the workplace. That policy change includes Black History Month, Women’s History Month in March, Asian-American Pacific-Islander Heritage Month in May and Pride in June.
Observers also noted that references to Black History Month have disappeared from Google Calendar. A company spokesperson said that the company stopped featuring “cultural moments” in mid-2024 and returned to displaying only public holidays and national observances from TimeAndDate.com globally.
Despite enacting policies that have removed racial commemorations, Trump signed a proclamation on January 31 that formally recognizes February as Black History Month.
Trump’s proclamation is about the most recognition Black History Month has received this year, according to some Black comms executives.
“I haven’t seen any Black History Month campaigns, and I feel that people are just scared of doing anything that celebrates diversity at all,” says Brennan Nevada Johnson, CEO of the eponymous agency, Brennan Nevada.
Johnson, a distant descendant of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, whose work led to the creation of Black History Month, according to the NAACP, founded her consultancy to uplift Black tech founders and BIPOC-led startups.
Those clients are quiet this month, she says, because they’re tired of pushing.
“Black-owned businesses, like myself, and a lot of the clients that I work with, know that [Black history] is something that should be told year round,” Johnson says, stressing that many brands have historically used February as a moment to capitalize on Black consumers. “Our purpose has always been to celebrate and champion Black voices, businesses and products, and that’s something that’s not going to change, regardless of what’s happening at the federal administration level.”
While Black History Month long outdates most corporate DEI programs, the two concepts have become intertwined as conservative activists target DEI. That’s frightened many companies, including those that work with the federal government.
Events and educational sessions that take place at brands throughout February annually are not happening this year, mostly in response to the Trump administration’s changes, says Troy Blackwell Jr., former deputy chief communications officer at the Department of Commerce’s Patent and Trademark Office. Blackwell, who serves as vice chair of the Diversity Action Alliance, also worked for the Peace Corps during the Biden administration.
Agencies like the Commerce Department lay out plans for campaigns and events for historical events and holidays well in advance, something his team did before Trump took office in January. However, Blackwell says those plans have been halted at the federal level, and by businesses that want to be in lockstep with the government.
“A lot of these big companies want to do big business with the federal government, and that requires having a good relationship with the administration,” he says. The government is the largest employer in the U.S., and about 80% of the federal workforce is outside of Washington, DC.
Meanwhile, public companies that are abandoning DEI programs or commemorative months live in 90-day sprints between earnings reports, says Thompson. He understands business leaders’ “knee-jerk reaction” to comply with new federal standards, he says, because they’re managing a stock price and have a short-term view.
Walmart, Ford, Tractor Supply, Molson Coors, McDonald’s and Target have all rolled back DEI programs over the last year, but some feature Black History Month messaging or products in stores and on their websites.
Target is a “company that does not mind making money from the community, but is not necessarily looking to support the community,” according to Blackwell.
Although the retailer is offering its Black History Month assortment online and in stores, the brand has joined the growing list of companies that have pulled back on DEI programs.
This month, the retailer’s chief community impact and equity officer, Kiera Fernandez, told employees that Target will end its three-year DEI goals and stop reports to external initiatives like Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index.
The company also published a fact sheet on its website titled, Target’s Belonging at the Bullseye Strategy, detailing how it will conclude its Racial Equity Action and Change initiatives in 2025 as planned. The program, which focused on carrying more products from Black- or minority-owned businesses, committed to spending $2 billion on Black-owned businesses by 2025.
Danielle Coke Balfour, a graphic designer and illustrator who started partnering with Target in 2021, said on LinkedIn that she would remove her line of products from stores as a result of the brand’s decision to walk back its DEI commitments.
“The decision to end these programs goes against everything that my business stands for at its core and is a signal of the dangerous trajectory we’ve been on for years as a result of the backlash to racial equity efforts,” she wrote in a post explaining her decision to part ways with the retailer. “I am disappointed, but I am not surprised.”
Johnson, whose clients include Black-owned businesses with a presence on Target shelves, said she was similarly devastated by the brand’s move away from DEI, despite its continued Black History Month branding.
Balfour’s company, Oh Happy Dani, began the process of removing her products from Target shelves ahead of Black History Month, but she is unsure how long it will take to fully phase them out. She notes that not all brands are in a position to remove a stream of income so quickly.
Target did not respond to requests for comment on their Black-owned and founded partners' decision to remove products from stores.
Kayla Castañeda, senior director of corporate affairs and communications for the retailer, said in a statement that Target is proud of its “wide-ranging assortment of products and services that help all guests feel seen and celebrated, increasing relevance with consumers.”
This includes offering its suite of Black History Month products as well as a year-long range of products, including from Black- and minority-owned businesses, Castañeda added. The Black History Month collection features businesses and products across a variety of lines.
“When the Googles of the world or the Targets of the world pull back, we have to be pragmatic and say they’re making a financial decision,” Thompson says. “For whatever market they’re in, they’re more concerned about the financial, immediate outcome versus the long-term culture, building growth of their organization.”
Not every brand is pulling back on Black History Month activations. Pinterest is approaching February similarly to years past by spotlighting Black users.
In partnership with Blackboard, Pinterest’s resource group for Black employees and allies, the company launched Tailored, a Black History Month campaign honoring the history, present-day impact and future of Black fashion. The platform is highlighting Black creators and figures as well as brands across the Pinterest Shop profile.
Pinterest’s team is celebrating Black employees with interactive virtual events focused on Black fashion, including internal and external speakers, in-office lunches inspired by Black culture and in-person chapter events locally, according to a company spokesperson.
Pinterest has also set up a two-to-one donation match for RAISEFashion, a nonprofit organization offering pro-bono advisory services, network access and development programs to emerging BIPOC designers, underrepresented talent and students from communities historically excluded from the fashion industry.
While other social platforms like Meta have shied away from diversity messaging this year, Pinterest’s efforts echo previous campaigns, but are not in response to actions by the federal government, according to a spokesperson.
Most companies are also not eliminating their employee resource groups, but are choosing to manage internal and external messaging more closely, says Thompson. Companies that have historically publicly supported Black History Month are continuing to talk about and celebrate it, Johnson agrees, but that’s more likely to happen in internal newsletters, Slack messages, notices of donations or internal celebrations, rather than via mainstream outlets.
Procter & Gamble, for instance, has held a Black History Month commemoration for employees for many years, P&G chief communications officer Damon Jones says. The owner of brands such as Olay, Tide, Tampax, Gillette and Pantene will continue to do so this year, he says.
General Mills chief communications officer Jano Cabrera says his company will comply with an executive order affecting federal contractors as it would any new legal requirement, but stresses that the brand is committed to serving everyone.
The company’s efforts for Black History Month include matching employee contributions to the United Negro College Fund, a nonprofit that backs scholarships for Black students and funds for 37 private historically Black colleges and universities. It also supports community engagement efforts such as Big Brother or Big Sister events and sponsors one of the largest breakfasts honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the country.
Since 2018, General Mills, which makes Cheerios, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Nature Valley and Totinos, has emphasized the importance of fostering a culture of belonging, Cabrera says, and the company continues to spotlight Black History Month.
“It’s about respecting and including all voices, ideas and perspectives,” he says.
It’s unclear how the Trump administration, and the many businesses following suit, will address identity months like Black History Month in the future, Blackwell says. Their actions on Juneteenth, the federal holiday celebrating the end of slavery, will be a sign of what’s to come.
“The thing is, administrations come and go. But for these companies and for agencies, your employees, your customer base, your potential clients, they are going to continue, and people are going to very much remember the moment the same way that people remember the moment five years ago,” he says.
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