NASCAR accused of discriminating against white men in diversity efforts

NASCAR and a racing group that supports the organization’s efforts to develop more diverse drivers and pit crew have become the latest corporations accused of discriminating against white men.

America First Legal, run by former Donald Trump adviser Stephen Miller, filed a petition Thursday asking the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate NASCAR and Rev Racing for “illegal discrimination against white, male Americans.”

“This illegal activity should not be permitted to continue,” senior counsel Nick Barry said in a statement.

“NASCAR shouldn’t be picking drivers based on their race and sex, but on their ability to drive,” he continued, adding: “All racial discrimination is wrong, even if it is the in-vogue ‘social justice’ cause of the day.”

America First Legal argues that NASCAR and Rev Racing’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts — such as the “Diversity Driver Development Program,” the “Diversity Pit Crew Development Program” and “NASCAR Diversity Internship Program” — violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race and sex.

The programs previously stated they were intended for women and ethnic minorities but were updated on Sept.1 to say they sought applicants of “diverse backgrounds and experiences,” according to the petition.

Under the original language, the Diversity Driver Development Program’s “Driver Eligibility” page limited admission to “female[s] or member[s] of one or more of the following ethnic minority classifications: American Indian, Alaskan Native or of native/indigenous descent, Asian or Pacific Islander; Black or African-American; Latino or Hispanic,” the petition says.

The program for pit crews and the internship program had similar language, it claims.

Even though that language has since been changed, America First Legal claims NASCAR and Rev Racing are continuing to carry out unlawful hiring practices “under the cloak of a ‘diverse backgrounds and experiences’ rebranding.”

“NASCAR’s and Rev Racing’s commitment to race and sex-based hiring has not wavered — the website changes described above seem to have been designed only to conceal their ongoing, deliberate and illegal discrimination against white, male Americans,” the petition says.

It then goes on to cite the landmark Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education, saying: “Discrimination based on immutable characteristics such as race, color, national origin or sex ‘generates a feeling of inferiority’ in its victims ‘that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely to ever be [un]done.’”

The Post has reached out to NASCAR for comment.

This is not the first time America First Legal took aim at a company’s DEI practices.

It has previously accused more than a dozen companies — including Morgan Stanley, Major League Baseball, McDonald’s and Starbucks — of discrimination.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has yet to respond to any of these requests.