It’s a touchy subject for automakers, some representatives told Automotive News Canada off the record
The abortion debate engulfing the United States is rippling through the Canadian automotive press, with some writers urging car companies in Canada to avoid holding media events in states with anti-abortion laws.
Elle Alder, a Torontobased auto writer, said anti-abortion legislation is often the first step in denying groups other rights, such as hardfought LGBTTQ+ protections and protection from racial discrimination.
Alder: Banning abortion leads to denying other rights, such as LGBTTQ+ protections
He said the urge to speak out came while he was attending a new-vehicle press event in Utah on June 24, the day the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that granted women the right to decide their own reproductive futures.
“By dinner, Utah’s trigger law had effectively banned any kind of care in that state,” Alder said.
“If a state has a position on Roe, all those things tend to follow it. With gay marriage and trans stuff, there’s a very strong argument you won’t be able to participate completely in those states,” said Alder, a member of the LGBTTQ+ community.
Alder penned a draft open letter that included signatures of more than 30 writers encouraging automakers to hold press events in states where “the equal rights and safety of all participants are assured.”
While the letter was not ultimately sent, he said it stirred discussions with automaker representatives.
He said “the majority” of people who signed the draft “intend to politely decline events in states identified as hostile by the Centre for Reproductive Rights and to make our reasons known to manufacturers.”
DIVERSE VOICES AT RISK
Wallcraft: “If I look at the situation and find the return isn’t worth the personal risk, I will choose not to go.”
Stephanie Wallcraft, president of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada, said companies risk losing important sectors of society as an audience.
“Automakers that choose to host events in those states are... reducing the diversity, and I think that hurts everyone in the industry.
Wallcraft said she respects the right of writers to refuse such assignments.
“When we’re asked to go to a location where some aspect of our rights may be at risk, if I look at the situation and find the return isn’t worth the personal risk, I will choose not to go,” she said.
Brands interviewed by Automotive News Canada are sensitive to the issue. Chuck Reimer, a spokesman for Mazda Canada, said the company’s U.S. events are held in Canada or in California, where abortion rights have been protected by the state constitution since 1969.
Mazda Canada’s public relations director, Sandra Lemaitre, and her U.S. counterpart are both members of the automaker’s diversity, equity and inclusion panel and “so are keenly aware of these types of considerations,” Reimer said.
“We are aware and have had some discussions, but there’s nothing official, no policy change yet.”
A TOUGH SELL
It’s a touchy subject for automakers, some representatives said off the record. While they might recognize the reluctance to attend events in such states, the desire to still sell cars in those states is an incentive to not publicly blacklist any location. As well, the Canadian companies said, they’re often at the mercy of their U.S.based head offices, which often take the lead in organizing media events south of the border.
“They call us and say, ‘We’re hosting this event and can give you this many seats.’ We either take it or leave it,” one automaker representative said on the condition of anonymity.
Alder said he was contacted by one company, which he would not identify, and was told that its event was being moved in consideration of the opposition to anti-abortion legislation. Automotive News Canada could not independently verify the claim.
Romaric Lartilleux, a spokesman for Toyota Canada, said the company is aware of the concerns and it tries to host events in Canada when vehicles are available. But some events are hosted in conjunction with Toyota’s U.S. division, and giving Canadian writers similar access to those in the United States is also a consideration.
“I could give numerous examples where we would have had to wait for six months after a U.S. event before being able to host an event in Canada,” Lartilleux said.
