Republican billionaire Rick Jackson is campaigning for Georgia governor on a promise to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs from state government and public education. However, the nonprofit organization he founded actively promoted DEI initiatives in 2021, including materials encouraging Georgia CEOs to implement race-conscious hiring practices and measure racial pay gaps. The healthcare entrepreneur, founder of Jackson Healthcare and its network of subsidiaries, has positioned himself as a staunch Trump ally who would become the president’s “favorite governor.”
The contradiction emerged as the Georgia GOP gubernatorial primary enters its final stretch before next Tuesday’s election. Jackson’s campaign platform explicitly calls for prohibiting DEI programs across state institutions while his social media messaging vows to “ban DEI insanity” and “criminalize reverse discrimination.” Meanwhile, his philanthropic venture goBeyondProfit launched a comprehensive workplace diversity initiative three years ago that remains active on the organization’s website.
Nonprofit promoted comprehensive DEI training for business leaders
GoBeyondProfit, where Jackson serves as founder and CEO, describes itself as a no-cost resource for Georgia business leaders interested in evolving corporate generosity into business strategy. In 2021, at the height of social justice movements following deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, the nonprofit launched “Leading a Thriving Workplace with Race in Mind.” The initiative featured a Telly Award-winning video series designed to help CEOs navigate diversity implementation.
The training materials included experts urging companies to invest financially in DEI work, conduct periodic pay equity reviews and adopt race-conscious hiring policies. One video promoted Ibram X. Kendi’s book “How To Be An Anti-Racist,” which critics characterize as rejecting colorblindness and defending discrimination to achieve equity. Speakers in the series framed workplace race issues through slavery and Jim Crow, with one describing slavery as “America’s first race-based economic system” whose vestiges persist in modern workplaces.
Matthew Harrison, then a Jackson Healthcare DEI executive, appeared prominently in the videos. He described implementing a “Rooney Rule” hiring policy at the company, stating the share of “people of color” hired into new roles increased from 9% to 25% within one year. Harrison credited this dramatic change to the diversity measures discussed in the instructional videos.
Campaign defends record while emphasizing merit-based approach
When questioned about the apparent contradiction, Jackson’s campaign avoided addressing whether the candidate knew about or approved the “Race in Mind” initiative. A spokesperson responded that Jackson “hires like the Georgia Bulldogs: only the best players hit the field, and he will prohibit reverse discrimination as governor.” The campaign emphasized that many of Georgia’s successful conservative business leaders served as program ambassadors or members at goBeyondProfit, citing Chick-fil-A’s involvement and participation by Home Depot founder Bernie Marcus until his death.
The DEI materials encouraged executives to take Implicit Association Tests measuring subconscious biases and create “Bias Breaker” lists cataloging known prejudices involving gender, sexual orientation, race, skin color, weight and age. Related blog posts authored by Harrison and other DEI experts provided detailed guidance on implementing these workplace diversity initiatives. One speaker emphasized the importance of tying DEI metrics to employee evaluations and urged employers to be “anti-racist” as discussed in Kendi’s recommended book.
Trump administration wages aggressive campaign against DEI nationwide
President Donald Trump has made eliminating DEI programs a cornerstone of his second term. Shortly after inauguration, he issued an executive order removing diversity initiatives from public services, universities and federal agencies. His administration has also taken aggressive legal action against DEI policies in courts across the country. Trump recently held a tele-rally for the Georgia primary warning voters that while others claim his support, “I endorse a man named Burt Jones,” referring to Georgia Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones who holds the president’s formal endorsement.
The contrast between Jackson’s current campaign messaging and his nonprofit’s recent history represents the latest complication for the candidate. Previous reporting revealed that Harrison, who wrote his thesis on “Colorism,” stated during a 2020 podcast interview that Jackson Healthcare leaders “get and see the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion in our workforce.” Additionally, one of Jackson’s healthcare staffing companies produced materials ridiculing Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Brutal primary race centers on Trump loyalty credentials
The Georgia GOP gubernatorial primary has frequently focused on which candidate can claim strongest allegiance to Trump. Jones’ campaign has branded Jackson a “Never-Trumper” and “fraud,” often citing his past donations to Trump opponents like Jeb Bush. Jackson has attempted to counter by running as a Trump-style outsider, donating $1 million to Trump’s MAGA Inc. upon launching his campaign and modeling his announcement after Trump with a celebratory elevator descent. He told local media he cannot name a single White House policy from the Trump administration he doesn’t support.
Jackson has attacked Jones as part of the political establishment while comparing Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to Biblical character Judas for disloyalty to Trump during efforts to contest the 2020 election. The healthcare billionaire has pledged to be Trump’s “favorite governor” if elected, despite lacking the president’s formal endorsement. Harrison’s role in the 2021 DEI videos included describing how Jackson Healthcare started a “race series” using an outside vendor to prevent employees from viewing it as “this HR mandate.”
The goBeyondProfit video series addressing workplace diversity remains accessible on the nonprofit’s website. Speakers in the materials argued that “doing nothing” on DEI was “cringe worthy” and emphasized the need for companies to “put your money where your mouth is” on diversity efforts. The initiative reflected widespread corporate America responses to 2020 racial justice movements, though many companies have since scaled back or eliminated such programs amid political backlash and changing legal landscapes under the Trump administration’s anti-DEI push.
