Stand Your Ground Legislative Group Loses Corporate Support

Some major corporate sponsors of a legislative group supporting the Stand Your Ground laws at the center of the Trayvon Martin killing are ditching the group. Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, McDonald’s, Kraft Foods, and Wendy’s have all cut their financial ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), The Washington Post reported.

The companies have come under fire from protests put together by groups including Common Cause and the civil rights group Color of Change.

Targeted companies also include AT&T, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Diageo, Wal-Mart, and the industry trade group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the Post reported.

ALEC was founded in the 1970s by conservative activist Paul Weyrich. Officials of the group maintain they were not directly involved in passage of the Florida law but the group’s web site notes similar ALEC-backed legislation passed in other states, the Post reported.

Companies that have pulled out of ALEC have generally said the decision was taken before the controversy over the Florida law erupted. However, ALEC Executive Director Ron Scheberle told the Post the attacks on his group are part of an “intimidation campaign . . . to silence our organization.”