WASHINGTON - On the heels of ending a failed boycott against the Walt Disney Company, an anti-gay lobbying group called the American Family Association has called for a boycott of Ford Motor Company because of its family-friendly policies. Among AFA's complaints: that Ford's corporate policies pledge not to discriminate against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees, and that Ford provides equal benefits for all its employees.

"A 'boycott of the week' won't change the fact that fairness is good for the bottom line," said Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign. "Ford - like other major corporations - understands that not only are these policies good for their business, but they're the right thing to do. Non-discrimination policies and equal employee benefits help recruit and retain the best talent while improving productivity by ensuring that all of their employees can provide for their families.

"More than 80 percent of Fortune 500 companies have sexual orientation non-discrimination policies and almost half provide domestic partner benefits," Solmonese added. "Non-discrimination policies covering gender identity and expression are also expanding rapidly. Ford's policies are in line with mainstream corporate America while the American Family Association continues to attack from the fringes."

"Ford reaches out to and supports the LGBT community because, like all fair-minded people and corporations, they understand the value of diversity," said Joan M. Garry, executive director of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. "More and more leading corporations are extending equal protections and benefits to their LGBT employees, and these desperate anti-gay attempts to take those protections away are being revealed as the cruel, mean-spirited attacks that they are.

"This latest nonsense from the American Family Association - like its failed boycott against Disney - is a ploy to get media visibility for an anti-gay agenda opposed by most Americans," Garry continued. "When Gallup reports that nearly 90 percent of Americans want gays and lesbians to be treated equally and protected in the workplace, it is clear that the American Family Association is radically out of touch with, and does not speak for, America's families."

HRC and GLAAD are urging community members who wish to express their support for Ford Motor Company's inclusive policies and marketing to call Ford's Customer Relationship Center at 800/392-3673 or e-mail crcredir@ford.com.