FedEx will continue to offer discounts to NRA members

By | February 26, 2018 at 8:37 PM CST - Updated August 14 at 10:35 AM

MEMPHIS, TN (WMC) - As several major companies drop their ties with the National Rifle Association, FedEx announced it will not change its position.

FedEx released a statement saying it did not think civilians should be allowed to have assault rifles but it supported the constitutional right of U.S. citizens to own firearms.

FedEx went on to say it would not remove the NRA from its list of groups that receive shipping discounts.

Companies like Delta Airlines, United Airlines, Hertz, MetLife, Wyndham Hotel Group, and more all cut ties with the NRA following the fallout from a Florida school shooting that left 17 people dead.

Pressure from activists caused those companies to change their policy for discounting rates to NRA members.

Activists have also urged FedEx to do the same.

FedEx's full statement on its decision to keep the NRA as a business ally is below:

"FedEx Corporation's positions on the issues of gun policy and safety differ from those of the National Rifle Association (NRA). FedEx opposes assault rifles being in the hands of civilians. While we strongly support the constitutional right of U.S. citizens to own firearms subject to appropriate background checks, FedEx views assault rifles and large capacity magazines as an inherent potential danger to schools, workplaces, and communities when such weapons are misused. We therefore support restricting them to the military. Most important, FedEx believes urgent action is required at the local, state, and Federal level to protect schools and students from incidents such as the horrific tragedy in Florida on February 14th.

Guns Down, one organization that urged FedEx to discontinue its policy of providing discounts to NRA members, responded to FedEx's statement below:

"While countless Fortune 500 companies have decided they should not be subsidizing the NRA's reckless and irresponsible agenda that is costing us tens of thousands of lives every year, FedEx has shockingly decided it wants to be the last man standing with the NRA. I can't help but wonder how much blood money FedEx is making through this partnership with the NRA and whether that money is worth the thousands of deaths that come with helping the gun lobby with an agenda that puts more and more firearms into our communities."

The NRA has yet to respond to requests for comment on FedEx's announcement.