by Mike Andrew - SGN Staff Writer

A nationally prominent opponent of Gay rights says he has persuaded Walmart executives to stop funding LGBT-friendly organizations.

On his February 6 radio broadcast, Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, said that as a result of his discussions, 'Walmart's been walking the straight-and-narrow. They're certainly not fueling and funding the opposition on these family issues.'

The FRC was founded by the Rev. James Dobson in 1981, as a spin-off of his Focus on the Family organization. Perkins became president of the group when Dobson retired in 2003. The Southern Poverty Law Center classified FRC as an anti-Gay hate group in 2010.

WALMART'S RESPONSE
When SGN contacted Walmart for comment, Walmart's national media relations director, Kory Lundberg, replied with a generic e-mail:

'Respect for the individual is one of the core values that have made us into the company we are today. We take pride in the fact that we treat every customer, every supplier, and every member of our individual communities fairly and equally.

'Walmart has not changed its position on funding. Our giving is targeted towards social impact on a broad range of issues. We fund at the national and at the local level where stores and clubs determine the priorities in their community.

'Walmart continues to have a strong commitment to diversity among our associates and against discrimination everywhere.'

Exactly the same statement was sent to the Huffington Post in response to that site's inquiry.

Asked specifically whether Perkins had, in fact, met with Walmart executives, and whether they had made any commitments to him as a result, Lundberg did not reply.

MIXED SIGNALS
Although it occasionally donates money to LGBT-friendly organizations and claims to have nondiscrimination policies covering LGBT employees, Walmart's record on LGBT issues is spotty at best.

In a 2010 case that drew national attention, a Walmart employee said he was stripped of many of his responsibilities and ordered to wear a distinctive yellow vest while on duty in the store after he revealed to his supervisor that he was Gay.

In 2011, the same year that the company completed a much-heralded revision of its nondiscrimination polices to include gender identity, the retail giant scored a dismal 40 out of a possible 100 on HRC's corporate rating scale.

ANTI-GAY CHILDREN'S BOOK
That same year, New York's Stonewall Democrats announced they were joining a coalition to keep Walmart stores out of the city because of the company's poor record on LGBT rights.

'Just last year [2010], more than 100 Walmart stores were found to be promoting a children's book that suggested that Gay people can overcome 'sin' and convert to heterosexuality with the help of counseling,' they said in their statement.

'Walmart CEO Mike Duke signed a petition in his home state of Arkansas that was aimed at preventing adoption by Gay and Lesbian parents.'

Walmart later confirmed that Duke did, in fact, sign the anti-Gay adoption petition, but declined further comment.

Not only did Duke sign the petition, but Jim Walton, son of Walmart founder Sam Walton, gave the initiative campaign $75,000 - more than half of the total money raised by the anti-Gay campaign.

According to an analysis by the Wake Up Walmart Campaign, 80% of the Walton family's political contributions to members of Congress went to candidates with scores of 10 or less (out of a possible 100) on HRC's political scorecard.

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