Few corporate decisions in the last decade fractured the conservative consumer base quite like what happened in America's sporting goods aisle. One retailer looked at its own customers — hunters, sport shooters, Second Amendment supporters — and decided to lecture them. The other quietly kept doing what it had always done: outfitting outdoorsmen without an ounce of political sermonizing. The result is one of the widest gaps on the entire Buy Woke Free scoreboard.
According to the BWF database, Dick's Sporting Goods scores a punishing 80/100 — deep in "Extremely Woke" territory — while Bass Pro Shops scores a perfect 0/100, earning a clean "Not Woke" rating. That's an 80-point chasm between two stores that, on paper, sell a lot of the same gear. Here's why this matchup isn't even close.
Dick's Sporting Goods: The Retailer That Turned On Its Own Customers
Dick's didn't just drift left — it made a series of deliberate, headline-grabbing decisions that put it at war with the very shoppers who built its hunting and firearms business.
In 2018, following the Parkland shooting, Dick's announced it would stop selling so-called "assault-style" rifles entirely, raised its minimum firearm purchase age to 21 regardless of state law, and — in a move that stunned the industry — destroyed roughly $5 million worth of rifle inventory rather than return it to manufacturers. CEO Ed Stack didn't stop there. The company hired gun-control lobbyists in Washington to push for stricter federal firearm legislation, directly funding the political opposition to its own customers' rights.
Then Dick's went further, pulling hunting departments out of hundreds of stores, declaring the category no longer aligned with its future. For millions of hunters and sport shooters, the message was unmistakable: your business — and your values — are no longer welcome here.
The wokeness wasn't limited to firearms, either. Dick's earned a perfect 100 on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index (the "Equality 100 Award"), operates extensive internal DEI programs, and maintains an ESG sustainability agenda. By every metric Buy Woke Free tracks — DEI, ESG, HRC CEI, and corporate political activism — Dick's checks the boxes. The 80/100 score is earned the hard way.
Bass Pro Shops: A Perfect Zero, and Proud of It
Now flip to the other end of the scoreboard. Bass Pro Shops (operating as BPS Direct) registers a flawless 0/100 — no meaningful woke activity whatsoever.
The BWF analysis is blunt: Bass Pro has no documented ESG or DEI programs, no Pride sponsorships, no listing on the HRC Corporate Equality Index, and no CEO Action for Diversity pledge. Founder Johnny Morris built the company around hunting, fishing, and the outdoors — and it has stayed in that lane without apology. There's no activist agenda stapled to your receipt, no corporate statement scolding you for your hobbies, no lobbyists in D.C. working against the people shopping the gun counter.
Bass Pro also absorbed Cabela's, consolidating two of the most hunter-and-angler-friendly brands in the country under one roof. For the conservative outdoorsman, it's about as safe a harbor as the modern retail landscape offers — a company that treats the Second Amendment as a feature of its customer base, not a problem to be managed.
Head-to-Head: The Scoreboard Doesn't Lie
- Firearms stance: Dick's destroyed inventory and lobbied for gun control. Bass Pro sells to sportsmen without a lecture. Advantage: Bass Pro.
- HRC Corporate Equality Index: Dick's scored a perfect 100 (max wokeness). Bass Pro isn't even listed. Advantage: Bass Pro.
- DEI & ESG programs: Dick's runs extensive programs. Bass Pro has none documented. Advantage: Bass Pro.
- Pride sponsorships: Bass Pro: none. Dick's: part of the broader DEI footprint. Advantage: Bass Pro.
- BWF Woke Score: Dick's 80 vs. Bass Pro 0. An 80-point blowout.
This isn't a coin flip or a "lesser of two evils" situation like so many corporate matchups. It's one of the rare comparisons where one side earns a genuine Patriot badge and the other sits near the top of the woke rankings.
The Verdict: Bass Pro Shops, Without Hesitation
If you care where your dollars go, this one writes itself. Bass Pro Shops (0/100) is the runaway winner over Dick's Sporting Goods (80/100). Bass Pro doesn't just edge out the competition — it laps it. You can buy your boots, ammo, rods, and camo from a company that respects the tradition you're shopping for, instead of one that literally bulldozed its own rifle inventory to make a political point.
Dick's made its choice in broad daylight. It told hunters and gun owners exactly how it felt about them, hired lobbyists to formalize the sentiment, and collected its HRC award on the way out. Conservatives don't owe that company a single dollar of forgiveness — especially when a 0/100 alternative is right down the road.
Before your next outdoor or sporting goods run, check the receipts at Buy Woke Free. When the gap is 80 points wide, the right call is obvious — and your wallet is the loudest vote you've got.