Justin Thomas must donate to LGBTQ rights

Citi has decided to give Justin Thomas a second chance after the facts relating to a homophobic exclamation during the Sentry Tournament of Championship, PGA Tour event in Hawaii.

The US investment bank announced that Thomas must donate a "significant part" of the sponsorship agreement to support the battles in favor of LGBTQ rights. 

Justin Thomas and Citi

“We considered terminating our relationship with him. It would send a clear and important message, but we decided to use this moment to work with Justin to try to create change. We want to more than make it clear that it is wrong to use this word. Instead, we hope our efforts can lead more people to make an affirmative choice not to use this word or others like it — and speak up when others do — because they understand the impact it can have, including on a friend, colleague or teammates who may be struggling with the decision to disclose their sexual orientation", wrote Carla Hassan, Citi’s chief marketing officer. 

The Ralph Lauren Corporation announced to discontinue the sponsorship because of the anti-gay slur. "At the Ralph Lauren Corporation, we believe in the dignity of all people, regardless of age, race, gender identity, ethnicity, political affiliation or orientation. This is part of our longstanding commitment to foster cultures of belonging – in the workplace and in communities around the world. We are disheartened by Mr. Thomas’s recent language, which is entirely inconsistent with our values. While we acknowledge that he has apologized and recognizes the severity of his words, he is a paid ambassador of our brand and his actions conflict with the inclusive culture that we strive to uphold. In reflecting on the responsibility we have to all of our stakeholders, we have decided to discontinue our sponsorship of Mr. Thomas at this time. As we make this decision, our hope is that Mr. Thomas does the hard and necessary work in order to partner with us again – truly examining this incident, learning, growing and ultimately using his platform to promote inclusion"

"There’s just no excuse - said Justin Thomas -. I’m an adult. I’m a grown man. There’s absolutely no reason for me to say anything like that. It’s terrible. I’m extremely embarrassed. It’s not who I am. It’s not the kind of person that I am. But Unfortunately I did it and I have to own up to it and I’m very apologetic. Like I said, it’s in excusable. I’m speechless. It’s bad. There’s no other way to put it. I need to do better. I need to be better. It’s definitely a learning experience. I deeply apologize to anyone and everybody who I offended and I’ll be better because of it".

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3pn6hGF