GM responds to racism allegations

STRAIT –GM responds to allegations of racism that were printed in a full-page advertisement in the Detroit Free Press on Sunday.

The ad accuses Mary Barra, CEO of GM, of consistently refusing to meet with several black-owned media companies. Detroiter Byron Allen calls on GM to allocate at least 5% of its advertising budget to black-owned media companies. The ad claims less than 1% of GM’s marketing budget goes to black-owned media companies.

The automaker said Barra has met Allen before and will continue to do so. Further, they said the claim that they only spend 0.5% of their advertising on black-owned media is not accurate, citing its partnership with the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a collection of African-American newspaper publishers across the United States.

GM issued the following statement on Sunday in response:

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The automaker cited its work with the HBCUs, its partnership with the National Association Of Black Owned Broadcasters and AIMM.

GM said it is dedicated to increasing diversity within its marketing agencies and partners.

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