"Wokism must die," said Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in the summer of 2023, a key player in the culture war that is tearing the United States apart. In the aftermath of the Iowa caucus, the future of his candidacy in the Republican primary is uncertain, but he will have won his political battle: the ideological defeat of the progressive left. The conservative offensive is benefiting from the divide among the Democratic camp – caused by the Israel-Hamas war – which has caused tension between African-Americans and "Wokes" on the one side and the Jewish community on the other.

Corporate America, meanwhile, did not wait for the war to disinvest from public debate. Previously, they had become massively involved after Donald Trump's exit from the Paris Climate Accords in 2017, in the wake of the MeToo (2017) and Black Lives Matter (2020) movements. However, this era of intense involvement seems to be well and truly over.

Political goals versus commercial failures

Do not say DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) anymore because that is annoying half your employees. Do not talk about ESG (environmental, social and corporate governance) criteria, because you will risk falling out with your shareholders, with the Republican states and with your customers. The number of companies using the acronym "ESG" when presenting their quarterly results has fallen by a factor of 2.5 in two years, according to the Wall Street Journal. Companies are capitulating because they have forgotten the mission assigned to them by the late Milton Friedman: to make a profit.

The best-known case is Disney, which, in its pursuit of political aims, was multiplying its commercial failures. "Creators lost sight of what their number one objective needed to be... We have to entertain first. It's not about [sending] messages," said its boss, Bob Iger, at the end of November. The latest offensive is aimed at Boeing, which is experiencing repeated manufacturing failures and which in 2022 added climate and DEI criteria to its executive compensation. "Do you want to fly in an airplane where they prioritized DEI hiring over your safety? That is actually happening," said billionaire Elon Musk, who has swung to the far right and believes DEI is "another word for 'racism.'"

The offensive is aided by the Supreme Court's 2023 ruling banning affirmative action in college hiring, while Republican state attorney generals have warned big business against "treating people differently because of the color of their skin, even for benign purposes, is unlawful and wrong."

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