Federal Express, the worldwide package delivery service, has announced that it will not be severing ties with the National Rifle Association, despite public demands for it to do so. In the wake of the deadly Parkland, FL, school shooting, many public voices have called on corporations to cut ties with the gun-rights group.
Hertz, Avis, Symantec and Delta Airlines are just a few of the companies that have discontinued popular discount programs they held with group in recent days. Chubb Ltd, the financial company, announced that it will stop underwriting insurance for NRA members known as Carry Guard, that covers policy holders with civil as well as criminal defense protection. Chubb says that they ended the relationship with the NRA three months ago but the made the announcement public recently.
FedEx says that despite differences in views it has with the group on the accessibility of some firearms, such as assault rifles, it will not discriminate against an organization for their political views.
“FedEx Corporation’s positions on the issues of gun policy and safety differ from those of the National Rifle Association (NRA). FedEx opposes assault rifles being in the hands of civilians. While we strongly support the constitutional right of U.S. citizens to own firearms subject to appropriate background checks, FedEx views assault rifles and large capacity magazines as an inherent potential danger to schools, workplaces, and communities when such weapons are misused. We therefore support restricting them to the military….”
“FedEx is a common carrier under Federal law and therefore does not and will not deny service or discriminate against any legal entity regardless of their policy positions or political views…FedEx has never set or changed rates for any of our millions of customers around the world in response to their politics, beliefs or positions on issues.”
The company followed with an additional statement yesterday.
“FedEx has never provided any donation or sponsorship to the NRA which is one of hundreds of alliance and association participants that serve more than one million customers. FedEx remains committed to all our customers and the pricing we provide them independent of their political affiliations and views.”
The NRA has come under increasing pressure to drop its opposition to more restrictive gun laws that activists believe will help decrease gun violence. Several ideas have been proposed in Congress including raising the age requirement for firearms to banning the sale of assault weapons altogether. The NRA has not indicated support for any of the proposals yet.
The NRA has responded to the corporate boycott, calling it a “shameful display of political and civic cowardice,” and said it will not be swayed from its mission to protect Second Amendment rights for all Americans.
“The law-abiding members of the NRA had nothing at all to do with the failure of [the Parkland] school’s security preparedness, the failure of America’s mental health system, the failure of the National Instant Check System or the cruel failures of both federal and local law enforcement,” the group said in a statement
“Let it be absolutely clear. The loss of a discount will neither scare nor distract one single NRA member from our mission to stand and defend the individual freedoms that have always made America the greatest nation in the world. In time, these brands will be replaced by others who recognize that patriotism and determined commitment to Constitutional freedoms are characteristics of a marketplace they very much want to serve.”