Today, powerful publicly traded corporations are posing a threat to the freedoms of everyday Americans.

But as Emily LaFata writes at Alliance Defending Freedom’s The Docket, Viewpoint Diversity Score’s Business Index is poised to play a pivotal role for lasting change.

LaFata shares how the Business Index helped shareholders at major companies call for better business ethics:

Research from the Business Index featured prominently in a resolution filed by David Bahnsen at Chase Bank’s annual shareholder meeting on May 16. A longtime shareholder at Chase, Bahnsen—who serves on the Viewpoint Diversity Score advisory council—was troubled by what appears to be a trend of ideologically motivated debanking at Chase…

For Bahnsen and nine other shareholders who filed similar resolutions, the Business Index was a tool they could use to substantively engage with their companies. In addition to the research the Business Index provides, the survey portion of the Business Index and model policies are actionable steps shareholders can call upon company leadership to take. 

And as LaFata observes, the Business Index proved useful to state officials as they sought solutions to politicized de-banking:

The Business Index also provides a roadmap for state officials seeking to hold corporations accountable for discriminating against accountholders because of their views. This spring, 19 state attorneys general wrote a letter calling on Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to investigate his company’s trend of politicized debanking and participate in the survey portion of the Business Index. That followed on the heels of letters from 13 state treasurers and 60 financial professionals calling on Chase to do the same.

Every American benefits when major corporations respect free speech and religious freedom. And the Business Index’s research, consulting, and model policies provide business leaders with the tools they need to respect viewpoint diversity and protect the fundamental freedoms of all Americans.

Read the full article here.