The Progressive Corporation lived up to its name, defending its practice of hiring based on race and gender on Tuesday.

When the company’s board was asked by conservative activist Ethan Peck, a representative for the National Center for Public Policy Research, why Progressive prioritizes “skin color and reproductive organs” when hiring employees and how it “could justify valuing surface characteristics over merit,” CEO Tricia Griffith responded that Progressive’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion is “an important part” of its growth and “just the right thing to do,” according to the Washington Times.

“You can’t put yourself in the shoes of somebody else if you don’t have a representative organization that represents the country as a whole,” Griffith said during the company’s annual shareholder meeting. {snip}

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