This is a very late response to a letter written on June 23, 2006.
The board of the Greater Texas Ford Dealers Advertising Fund which represents 78 Ford Dealers in North Texas has sent a letter to Ford Motor Company expressing sympathy with the virulently anti-gay American Family Association and requesting that Ford no longer advertise with “controversial media”, in particular “homosexual related media and events”.
The language of the letter is overflowing with homophobia and bigotry and includes such language as
gay lifestyle
gay polygamy
objectionable
assault on their values
offend or alienate the masses in order to placate a minority
offensive photos of the gay lifestyle
controversial lifestyle
This is contrasted with language describing the AFA activists
mainstream customers
broad spectrum
mutual customers
not religious fanatics
average citizens concerned for the well-being of their families
our customers
all-American image
It is quite clear that the Ford dealers in North Texas go beyond an appeal to profitable practices but instead have issued a declaration that they are the enemy of the gay consumer. I don’t live in Texas, but if I did I think that I would make a point of traveling to another state just to buy a Ford vehicle. In this way, I could support Ford Motor Company for their principled stance while refusing any profit to those who seek the exclusion of gay consumers from the marketplace.
I encourage all readers that when you next go to buy a vehicle from any dealer, you inquire as to their opinions on marketing to gay customers and make your vendor selection accordingly. You may also want to inquire if the dealer has gay employees or a non-discrimination policy. I recognize that it is impractical to do this with every day-to-day purchase, but buying a vehicle is significant and infrequent. It is important, especially in less urban areas, that vendors recognize that gay people are everyone and everywhere and that homophobic or bigoted attitudes effect our willingness to purchase.
America car sales are down. Not just Ford. The only car company reporting increases is Toyota with a 14% increase in sales.
Gerneral Motors is down 26%
Ford down 7%
Chryler is down 13%
These numbers are as of July 5th.
The AFA is taking credit for something they didn’t do….
All the American car companies are down causing them to lay off AMERICANS both gay and staight. BY the AFA continuing this Boycott they are not really doing anything but taking money out the hands of working Americans as Ford is forced to close plants and layoff workers.
Is the AFA going to help feed the kids of the laid off Ford Workers?
If the AFA really cared about America, they would allow Ford to do whatever they can to beat the foreign Market. Instead they would rather take food off the tables in American homes while they push their anti-gay agenda.
I guess AFA can take credit for Ford’s sales having slumped the least of the Big Three.
I just bought a car for my partner yesterday. While I didn’t enquire into their policies on gays or marketing, I was very impressed at how open the salesperson was about the relationship between my partner and me.
He went in and picked out the car, got them to run my credit, and get the paperwork set up, and then I came in that evening to sign the paperwork and write a check. They never gave either of us a hard time, and even commented to me about what a good car my “partner” had made.
My partner and I bought our last car together in both out names. The sales staff was nice and no one questioned a thing. WE BOUGHT A FORD!!!!!(Mazda)
I read a scanned copy of that letter and I have to say, I got quite a different impression by the end. The dealers’ bottom line was that they were asking Ford to avoid advertising in ANY controversial publications, not just homosexual ones. They were pleading with Ford not to take a public stance on any issue at all. Ford was not founded on any particular values system, and as a result has employees and customers all across the board. This sort of request makes sense if you want to keep business stable, and the bottom line was A LOT more broad than just the issue of homosexuality. Boycotts due to any other controversial issue might have resulted in the same type of letter with the exact same request, in which homosexuality wouldn’t have even been mentioned. If they had really wanted to write a targeted, hateful anti-gay letter, they certainly wouldn’t have bothered mentioning “all controversial publications” in their main request. My conclusion: the Ford dealers aren’t out to get anyone except Ford.
gravy train,
If you “concluded” that the Texas Ford group was really focused on “all controversial publications”, then I suspect you determined your conclusion before reading the letter.
It was quite clear that the only thing that the Texas group found “controversial” was the fact that the target audience was gay.
i.e. gay = controversial.
Nothing else was listed as controversial. Not TV shows, scandal magazines, endorsements by morally questionable celebrities, nothing at all except gay people. So sorry, gravy train, but your “conclusion” doesn’t fly.
The only way one could “conclude” that the Texas good ol’ boys were wishing to simply avoid “controversy” would be if you agreed with them that advertising to gay people is “objectionable” and “an assault on the values” of “average citizens concerned for the well-being of their families” and will “offend or alienate the masses in order to placate a minority” and hurt Ford’s “all-American image”.
And, gravy train, if that’s what you believe then my opinion of you is very similar to my opinion of the Texas Ford dealers.
Gravy Train, I would tend to agree for the most part, except that the letter went beyond asking for that–they mentioned what a few customers actually thought. Also, marketers do target–Time, Newsweek, Cosmopolitan have very targeted audiences. I think the letter could have been more objective in its presentation.
News Flash 11Aug06:
“Donald Wildmon claims credit for sun rising, setting, today.”
OK, so the AFA has campaigned to have their supporters go and pester Ford dealers. If there any indication these people ever intended to purchase a Ford? Or is this a rent-a-crowd?
Ford sales are slumping in the US. Full stop. As are most domestic US makers. But Ford more so. Perhaps this is better seen as the collision of current oil prices, and product ranges that are heavily skewed to those freakin ENORMOUS trucks; but problems have been emerging for 5 years.
On the other hand: Ford, with an emphasis on smaller, more modern offerings, is elsewhere in the World doing quite nicely. And, as those of us in Europe and Australia well know, Ford adverts. frequently gay-focussed publications etc; in ways that would have any AFA pointy-head reaching for their heart medications. Try the commercialcloset.org for some.
I’m unconvinced Ford should stake it’s overall future on a letter from a group in North Texas who reports to “represent” the views of 3% of U.S. dealers.
Perhaps Dearborn has done some checking up on the Wildmon character, and realised that this is how he has made is living for the past decades — organising hysteria to generate donations. Perhaps the Ford Motor Co. has also done a bit of a ring-around of all those companies previously targeted by the AFA and realised these campaigns are best stared down and/or ignored. They are a nuisance, but it’s better than ruining your overalll reputation.
And anyone need reminding who was one of the signatures on this AFA campaign?
I posted on this a few months ago. Gas above $3 a gallon and inventories full of SUV’s, gee I wonder why sales are down? The AFA doesn’t lack audacity, that is for sure. I can empathize with the plight of the dealerships to an extent (receiving letters, phone calls and visits from Wildmonites), but their efforts should be aimed at the AFA. Even they agree that the other manufacturers are advertising in the same ways, so who is to blame for attacking Ford?
The truth is that Wildmon is hip deep in major companies who are becoming more and more gay friendly and supportive of gay employees and customers. In the middle of a changing world, he is desperate for a voice someone will listen to.
This letter, in my opinion, was a travesty – a veiled attempt to align a certain group of Ford dealers with the American “Family” Association. If these dealers were solely interested in asking the company to avoid advertising in “controversial” media, then that would mean EVERY media outlet, since anyone can claim something is “controversial.”
There is nothing in this letter which indicates hard numbers, and one would think if these dealers were that upset, they’d be keeping track a little more thoroughly than simply reporting being “beseiged.” Moreover, there is just too much that is fishy about the wording and the content of this letter – too many catch-phrases that sound like they came from an AFA leaflet. No real information, just a bunch of cliches. This boycott has gone on for MONTHS – it seems strange that the dealers are now reporting they are beseiged by the loons from the AFA.
No one in their right mind is going to believe that this list of christo-fascist organizations represents the mainstream of anything. These groups signed onto this boycott because they want to shut down our national gay newsmagazines. Those magazines don’t really “offend” them – they aren’t the target audience nor are they the intended audience.It’s rather hard to claim that your “values” are violated by a newsmagazine that you can merely choose not to purchase – and its even harder to claim that you are looking out for the well-being of your family by claiming the existence of those magazines and that advertising deeply wounds your sense of being. It’s all simply bullshit – which is what most of the AFA’s campaigns have been over the years.
What isn’t crap is that these dealers don’t mind at all asking some other group of Americans to sacrifice business (meaning ads) to placate some third party. And since we all know that the AFA doesn’t want companies even HIRING us, how would those dealers respond to being boycotted by these same people over their employment decisions? Their benefit decisions? Obviously, this group would fold in an instant.
There was no excuse for these dealers not to conduct their own research – it’s not as if it is difficult to find indicting information about the AFA or any other group on that list of hatemongers. Before they even wrote a letter like this, they could have spent a couple of hours googling and revealed enough failed boycotts by the AFA to trash any claim that these people are just “average citizens.” There is nothing “average” about them, and there is nothing “all-American” about them either. We should be offended – and should let this group know we are offended.
I find it even more telling that these dealers seem to be grasping for what to say to these customers who drop by with their copies of The Advocate and cry out about how their all-American values are being violated because Ford has an ad in the magazine. Puh-leeze. How hard is it for these dealers to ask those customers if they boycotted Disney, Burger King, Three’s Company, Target, WalMart, Kraft, Crest Toothpaste, Carl’s Junior, A Sharks Tale. . .and on and on and on? If the customer is going to walk into a dealer and start making political demands concerning a company’s relationship with others in the community, then it ain’t the target community that’s the problem.
Maybe these dealers should either tell the AFA people that they’ll sell exclusively to them (and advertise at their command) or tell them to jump off a cliff. No realistic businessman is going to stop marketing to a group of people who cause no trouble, spend good money and are good customers simply because some cabal of theocrats has decided God has told them to dictate advertising choices. Seems to me these dealers should publish in every one of their LOCAL ads that only members of these wingnut groups may shop there, or at the very least their business practices are preapproved by these organizations.
Either that or they should just post a sign with the long, long, long, list of companies, television programs, and other organized boycotts by these charlatan groups. And stick it in the faces of those people stopping by. If these people REALLY boycotted all the companies they’ve claimed to, most of their members would be living like the Amish.
It seems to me that rather than simply taking our business elsewhere, it might be worthwhile to send a letter to the Advertising Fund expressing disappointment and asking for them to be more fairminded. If the only voices they’ve been hearing from in this matter is the AFA’s, how can we expect them to do anything other than parrot the AFA?
I’ll be writing a letter to the Advertising Fund myself*, and I encourage others to do the same—after all the best way to defend oneself against disinfo is with info.
Kevin said:
I find it even more telling that these dealers seem to be grasping for what to say to these customers who drop by with their copies of The Advocate and cry out about how their all-American values are being violated because Ford has an ad in the magazine.
Trust me, I’ve been through something similar. In the late 80’s I worked for a company that owned a string of mall-based bookstores. At some point an organization (it might have been an early incarnation of the AFA but I don’t quite remember) found a few books in there that they didn’t deem wholesome and started a boycott of the parent company. As a retail store also owned by that company, we would get stacks of these little preprinted cards signed and mailed by residents every day. Then came the phone calls, and finally visits. Like swarms of minions, they came to complain about something they had been told to complain about. They had absolutely no interest in facts or debate, they wanted to club us over the head from what they were certain was the moral high ground. I don’t remember that we lost any money but everyone in management wasted a lot of time and patience dealing with them.
So I don’t have any problem believing that some dealerships might be fed up with the response, especially back in June when the letter was written. The letter does have a fishy smell with the wording, but it’s certainly possible. I just think they should be addressing their gripe to the AFA, not Ford Corporate.
I know someone in Texas whose husband manages some dealerships. I have to make a note to ask about this.
The Greater Texas Ford Advertising Fund name has been used since 2001 (kinda recent) but the organization has been around since 1947. It appears, however, to represent only a handful of dealers who (I assume) pitch in for joint advertising.
Of the 78 dealers represented by the organization, I was only able to identify 11 specific dealerships represented by the signatories on the letter (I found no reference to Ashley Willson, and both Henry Adams and Mike Edwards resulted in too many entries to identify the dealership).
The dealers that signed that they do not consider gay customers to be mainstream but instead assault the values of average citizens are:
Rogers Ford Sales in Midland
Gene Messer Ford in Amarillo
Gene Messer Ford in Lubbock
McLarty Automall in Texarkana
Pegues-Hurst Ford in Longview
Stockton Ford in Fort Stockton
John Chandler Ford in Amarillo
Wichita Falls Ford in Wichita Falls
Brownwood Ford in Brownwood
Smith Ford in Slaton
Smith Ford in Levelland
The company’s founder, Henry Ford, led a campaign that Americans not support or allow Jewish refugees from Hitler’s pogroms to enter our country.
He was an adament anti Semite and spent money on promotions that discriminated against Jewish employment or pro Jewish workers and politicians.
He personally wrote arguments against boats carrying Jews to dock at our shores.
Turning them away was certain death for those people and their children.
Now comes another attack on not just Americans who happen to be gay, but human beings with the talent and wherewithal to earn enough money to buy Ford’s products.
Segregationists put pressure on companies who advertised with or supported any civil rights law organizations.
They also threatened politicians and clergy who made any MENTION of support for Jews, blacks, women…and of course-‘queers’.
History is on our side people. And if Ford caves…this is more of the same policies that have ALWAYS been a part of their history.
In any zeal to isolate and threaten a minority, WE ALL LOSE!!!
Some people just won’t learn.
Shame on these Ford dealers, shame on AFA.
Of course Texas would be fertile ground for their campaign.
Family values…yeah….right.
I didn’t buy Ford because they advertise in homosexual publications. They sent me $45,000 pre-approved credit since I just finished paying off one FORD. I wrote them a letter, CC’d the AFA and told them I bought a car elsewhere. I’ll buy a FORD again but not until they stop pushing the political aspirations of the homosexual lobby.
Wow, Pal, that’s amazing.
But I’m trying to figure out exactly what you object to.
Do you object to the existence of gay people? If so, I’m wondering if maybe you think gay people should just all be killed?
Or perhaps you object to gay people buying cars? Should gay people walk everywhere or take the bus?
Then maybe it’s that you object to a car company advertising their products to gay people? Perhaps you think that gay people should just buy one assigned type of car? Or that an auto company should target market every OTHER niche market except gay people? Or that auto companies shouldn’t try to make profit at all – maybe you’re a socialist?
Or perhaps it is simply that you think that when auto companies go to advertise to gay people they should not advertise in the magazines that gay people read? Maybe you think that auto companies should run adds in People or in the LA Times that say “attention gay people, we aren’t advertising in gay media so pay attention to this ad – it’s for you”?
Or perhaps it’s none of the above.
Maybe you just hate gay people so much that you actually make purchasing decisions based on whether another company hates gay people as well.
Of course, the most likely reality is that you are lying through your teeth and did not really do what you are claiming. After all, anti-gay folks have a long long history of dishonesty so yours would be just one more example.
Or maybe Pal is a member of the APA who was intimidated by the Evil Nasty Gay Activists(TM) into violating his conscience and voting to remove homosexuality from the DSM, but he’s finally decided that he’s just not going to take it anymore and he doesn’t care what those Gay Activists do with the photos of him in a compromising position with a goat that they employed to strong-arm his vote.
I completely disagree with the homosexual lifestyle, however, I have nothing against homosexuals themselves. I will not support them either. In my opinion, they are people, they deserve care, and respect, but I will not support their lifestyle. If it means boycotting Ford because of it, that’s fine with me, if it means boycotting Wal-Mart because of it, I’ll do it.
I’ve read talk of furthering American economics….
I have a question, say it was a “perfect homosexual world” everyone in the world was homosexual, no heterosexuals, bisexuals, whatever (no, I am not saying bisexuals are correct, or right) American would cease to exist. PEOPLE would cease to exist if the entire world was homosexual. Homosexuality, and the support of homosexuality doesn’t further or promote economic growth in the long run. It actually hinders it, kills it, stops it.
I completely disagree with the homosexual lifestyle
What exactly is that in your view and how is it you think you are supporting it?
I have a question, say it was a “perfect homosexual world” everyone in the world was homosexual, no heterosexuals, bisexuals, whatever (no, I am not saying bisexuals are correct, or right) American would cease to exist. PEOPLE would cease to exist if the entire world was homosexual.
That is quite possibly one of the most absurd things I have ever read. Your jumping scope from the entire world to “American” aside, where is it you think homosexuals come from? (hint: the same place everyone else does)
Regardless of how you feel about “the gay lifestyle”, these boycotts are a farce. To genuinely follow this line of thinking, one would quite literally have to remove oneself from commerce entirely. But since no one is going to do this, the workers of a few select companies suffer for the ideological tirades of an organization in need of fear based donations. This is not a tactic restricted to one side or the other in this equation, but it does seem more common to one.
In this case, it’s more of an illusion of a farce, because they have claimed results which obviously came about in spite of the boycott. One more lie among many – what does the truth matter anyway?
Ah, the law of gross expansion rears its head once more!
Beloved, that is not a “perfect homosexual world”. That is you being a twit.
Those of us who are gay happen to like our straight friends. Just the way they are. But thank-you for caring.
Interesting economic theory you have too. I presume you must be writing up a PhD in Economics? (and, plainly, at the Chicago school…)
But I think you may have overlooked one thing: we’re gay, not sterile. As I type, lesbians at the Spermatozoa Collective are busy mailing out millions of live samples from millions of gay men. As their motto says…
You may sleep in peace. Babies will still exist, even after we have converted the entire planet.