Many firms are hiding or doing away entirely with DEI programs in recent years, and Stacey Abrams is giving them a warning about what’s to come.

“This notion that simply complying a little bit stops at the water’s edge is antithetical to every history we have ever written, and it costs you,” she said on a panel at NYU School of Law earlier this month, according to Fortune. “It may not cost you in the short term, but in the long term.”

Abrams said that firms that have made DEI promises in the past but then have broken them a few years later may wind up leaving some groups out. She also shared that these businesses are "not operating in silos" because customers are paying attention. That includes federal contractors who have been told by high government officials to get rid of their DEI practices or lose the government's business.

“I’m also less sympathetic to multi-billion dollar corporations that are concerned about losing a few contracts when they’re willing to sacrifice whole communities for that purpose,” said Abrams. 

Customers have boycotted and criticized businesses like Target for cutting back on or getting rid of their DEI programs. This has caused traffic to drop and sales to fall short of expectations. 

However, Abrams said that Costco is a good example of a corporation that has stuck to its DEI policy. Earlier this year, the company's board of directors unanimously advised shareholders to vote against an anti-DEI motion. They did so by a margin of 98%. The board declared that the group is "rooted in respect" and that inclusion is "appropriate and necessary," according to Fortune’s.

Abrams further noted, that these are the types of moves that need to be done to support DEI programs that are not only legal but are also good for businesses. 

“Costco has always been grounded in this responsibility. Therefore, irrespective of the change, they never had to change their policies, they never had to promote who they were. They simply are. And we can see the distinction between Costco and other institutions.”