American Family Association Sends Corporate Religious Liberty Index Survey to Dozens of CEOs Nationwide

TUPELO, Miss.—Last week, dozens of CEOs from some of the nation’s largest companies received the new Corporate Religious Liberty Index (CRLI) survey from the American Family Association’s (AFA, www.afa.net) that will educate the country about which companies honor religious liberty—and those that don’t. 

AFA’s newest campaign, the CRLI is a short, simple questionnaire that seeks to gauge the importance of the broad issue of religious liberty for the nation’s major companies, including large-scale retailers and manufacturers. The index is in direct response to the growing threats against religious liberty in the U.S., including but not limited to, faith in America.

“We believe these influential CEOs will see the importance of completing this short survey on the vital topic of religious freedom and let their customers—and the nation—know where they stand when it comes to personal liberties,” said AFA Executive Vice President Ed Vitagliano. “This survey will communicate to Americans which companies value their morals, beliefs and freedoms and which choose the politically correct way when doing business. Especially as religious liberties are being taken away daily across our nation, there will be much to glean from how these corporations weigh in on their value of religious freedom.”

The first company to complete and return the seven-question survey from AFA was Wal-Mart, which scored a perfect 100, with its answers demonstrating that the corporation respects and values religious freedoms.

Companies that received the survey include: Barnes & Noble, Bed Bath & Beyond, Best Buy, Big Lots, Campbell Soup Company, Chick-fil-A, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Dollar Tree, Fred’s, Foot Locker, Hallmark, Hobby Lobby, Home Depot, Interstate Battery, J.C. Penney, Kmart, Kohl’s, Lowe’s, Marshalls/T.J. Maxx, Michael’s Stores, Office Depot/Office Max, Old Navy (The Gap), PepsiCo, PetSmart, Proctor & Gamble, Sam’s Club (Walmart), Sears Holdings Corp., Staples, Target and Toys ‘R’ Us.

The survey includes seven questions that deal with corporate policies and practices. As companies take the survey, the answers will be scored, compiled and assigned an “index number” that will indicate whether or not companies are favorable, indifferent or antagonistic to religious liberty. The index number will fall on a scale of 0 to 100, with 100 indicating full support for religious freedom.

AFA will release results of additional company surveys in the coming weeks, especially as consumers prepare for the busy Christmas shopping season and align themselves with businesses that honor their values. Going forward, a yearly report will also be generated and released each September.

AFA expects the report to garner widespread attention and especially consumer interest, as it highlights those companies that are champions of religious freedom and those that are hostile to it. For more on the Corporate Religious Liberty Index, visit the AFA Journal.