McDonald’s sued over Latino scholarships after backing off DEI practices

McDonald’s is being sued over its long-running program offering scholarships to Latino and Hispanic students. 

The lawsuit filed in Nashville on Sunday by the American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER), a group opposed to affirmative action, came days after McDonald’s added its voice to a chorus of corporations rolling back or ditching diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, citing a “shifting legal landscape.” 

But the burger giant’s efforts are not sufficient, according to the complaint filed by AAER.

“It is our hope that McDonald’s immediately pauses this scholarship program so it can be opened to all under-resourced high school students regardless of their ethnic heritage,” Edward Blum, president of AAER, said in a statement. 

Over 17,000 scholarships awarded since 1985

McDonald’s has awarded more than $33 million in college scholarships to over 17,000 Hispanic and Latino high school students since 1985 through a scholarship program, which is discriminatory because it is not open to all races, the AAER suit alleges.

“We are in the process of reviewing the complaint and will respond to it accordingly,” McDonald’s said in an emailed statement. However, McDonald’s announced its evolution on our inclusion work last week, and part of that process will be reviewing programs, in partnership with our franchisees as applicable, to ensure these programs align with our vision moving forward.”

The lawsuit is among a slew of legal challenges to DEI policies filed after the 2023 Supreme Court decision prohibiting affirmative action in college admissions in a case launched by AAER. 

McDonald’s last week said it would ditch diversity goals for employees in a move also recently echoed by companies including Meta, Ford and Walmart. Still, companies including Apple, Costco and Target continue to maintain and defend DEI practices.