ADF honored by Heritage Foundation’s ‘Innovation Prize’ for ranking C-suite commitment to freedom

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Just a week after launching the Viewpoint Diversity Score website and Business Index, Alliance Defending Freedom has been presented with an Innovation Prize from The Heritage Foundation.

The index rates 50 publicly traded corporations on the Fortune 1000 list, evaluating their commitment to fostering a culture of free speech and religious liberty for their employees, customers, and the general public. The project also provides companies with workable solutions through model polices, research, toolkits, polling, and constructive dialogue.

“We are honored to receive this prestigious award and thank our friends at The Heritage Foundation for their critical leadership promoting our nation’s founding principles across our culture—including in corporate America,” said ADF President and CEO Michael Farris. “CEOs and business leaders have positions of considerable power. They shouldn’t weaponize their influence or the companies they run to divide Americans or engage in speech censorship or anti-religious bigotry. We hope that our Viewpoint Diversity Score Business Index will motivate C-suite leaders to adopt policies and practices that respect the core liberties of their employees, consumers, and fellow Americans.”

Viewpoint Diversity Score is a joint venture of ADF and Inspire Investing, a Christian investing and financial technology firm informing investment decisions on billions of dollars around the globe. As leaders from ADF and Inspire Investing recently explained in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, the Business Index focuses on industries that have the greatest potential to impact free speech and religious freedom. These include industries that provide essential banking, payment processing, and cloud services, or that serve as platforms for third-party expression in the digital space. Many of the companies are household names, like Meta (Facebook, Instagram, etc.), Twitter, and Bank of America.

“Business leaders can help heal a divided America by simply respecting the diverse viewpoints of employees, customers, and stakeholders,” said ADF Senior Counsel and Senior Vice President for Corporate Engagement Jeremy Tedesco. “Instead of using the cultural power of their brands to drive polarization, business leaders should commit to respecting everyone, regardless of their religion or ideology. Businesses should respect viewpoint diversity at every level of their organizations, from the shop floor to the board room, and externally as well.”

In its inaugural year, the Heritage Innovation Prize recognizes non-profit organizations that are advancing American freedom in seven key areas, including holding Big Tech accountable.

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.

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