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Harley-Davidson board of directors silent on future, fate of 'woke' CEO and chairman

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Harley-Davidson board of directors silent on future, fate of 'woke' CEO and chairman

The leadership of Harley-Davidson is facing questions following a series of curious strategic decisions and public relations moves that have attracted widespread attention. 

The “woke” internal agenda of CEO Jochen Zeitz, and the shocking comparisons he made of himself to the Taliban, the global terror group, in his quest for “sustainability” have damaged the motorcycle maker’s brand integrity, many say — plus sparked outrage on social media and launched a rebellion among Harley-Davidson’s loyal customers. 

Just two days ago, the company released a statement renouncing DEI and other controversial initiatives it had put into place in recent years.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON CEO COMPARES HIMSELF TO ‘TALIBAN’ IN EFFORT TO REMAKE MOTORCYCLE BRAND

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“It is critical to our business that we hire and retain the best talent and that all employees feel welcome,” the company noted. 

“That said, we have not operated a DEI function since April 2024, and we do not have a DEI function today. We do not have hiring quotas and we no longer have supplier diversity spend goals.”

Jochen Zietz, chairman and CEO of Harley-Davidson, has compared himself to the Taliban, the global terror group, in his quest for “sustainability.” Inset: a biker with an American flag on his Harley. (Reuters/Brendan McDermid | Reuters)

In late July, filmmaker and conservative political commentator Robby Starbuck tweeted, “@harleydavidson has been one of the most beloved brands in America but recently on CEO Jochen Zeitz’s watch, they’ve gone totally woke.” This week, Starbuck celebrated the company’s change of heart. 

“Recently on CEO Jochen Zeitz’s watch, they’ve gone totally woke.” 

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Given this and more, there are increasing concerns about the direction of the Milwaukee motorcycle maker, one of America’s most beloved brands. 

Zeitz is both Harley-Davidson’s CEO and chairman of the board.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON SLAMS BRAKES ON ‘WOKE’ POLICIES AFTER SPARKING BIKER AND SOCIAL-MEDIA OUTRAGE

Fox News Digital this week attempted to reach Zeitz and Harley-Davidson, as well as each member of its board of directors, to discuss their versions of recent events, as well as other issues.

Jochen Zeitz is seen in Nuremberg, Germany, in 2008, years before he became CEO and chairman of the board of Harley-Davidson.  (Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

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Here is the result. 

HARLEY-DAVIDSON ‘USED’ BIKERS BEFORE ‘WOKE’ CONTROVERSY, FORMER OUTLAW RIDER CLAIM 

Jochen Zeitz

Board bio: Chairman, president and chief executive officer, Harley-Davidson, Inc.

Additional bio: Became CEO of Puma at age 30, founder of Team B with a mission to define business by social agenda, and opened the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art in South Africa in 2017. 

“We are trying to take on traditional capitalism and trying to redefine it,” Zeitz told executives at a globalist business summit in Switzerland in 2020, the year he became CEO of Harley-Davidson.

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Reply to Fox News Digital: Did not respond to phone or email requests from Fox News Digital.

Festival participants are shown on their Harley-Davidson bikes at the big ride in Saxony, Dresden, Germany, in July 2023. (Matthias Rietschel/picture alliance/Getty Images)

Troy Alstead

Board bio: President and CEO, Ocean5 and Table 47, founder of Harbor 05, LLC, and former chief operating officer, Starbucks Corporation

Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.

Jared Dourdeville

Board bio: H Partners Management, LLC

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Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.

James Duncan Farley Jr.

Board bio: President and chief executive officer Ford Motor Company

Reply to Fox News Digital: No response. 

Allan Golston

Board bio: President, United States Program for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

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Reply to Fox News Digital: “I’m not able to comment,” Golston said, and hung up the phone. Also, an out-of-office message arrived via email. 

A Harley-Davidson logo is seen near a store in Krakow, Poland, in January. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Sara Levinson

Board bio: Co-founder and former director of Katapult Studio, former executive, Clubmom, Inc., NFL Properties, Inc. and MTV: Music Television.

Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.

For more Lifestyle articles, visit foxnews/lifestyle

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Norman Thomas Linebarger

Board bio: Former executive chairman of Cummins, Inc. and former chairman and chief executive officer of Cummins, Inc.

Reply to Fox News Digital: No response. 

Jochen Zeitz, then-CEO of Puma, is shown in Berlin in 2009.  (Michele Tantussi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Rafeh Masood

Board bio: Chief growth and digital officer of Royal Caribbean Group

Reply to Fox News Digital: Unnamed individual answered phone, said Masood was not available. 

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Maryrose Sylvester

Board bio: Former executive, ABB Group, General Electric Intelligent Platforms, and General Electric Lighting

Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.

Fox News Digital’s Hannah Grossman contributed to this report.

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Midwest

Ohio surgeon allegedly forced abortion pills into sleeping girlfriend’s mouth after learning of pregnancy

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Ohio surgeon allegedly forced abortion pills into sleeping girlfriend’s mouth after learning of pregnancy

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An Ohio surgeon has been indicted for allegedly crushing abortion pills and placing them in his pregnant girlfriend’s mouth as she slept, resulting in the suspension of his medical license ahead of a hearing. 

Hassan-James Abbas, a 32-year-old surgical resident at the University of Toledo, allegedly administered the drugs in secret.

On Dec. 3, a Lucas County grand jury indicted him on six felony charges, including abduction, tampering with evidence, unlawful distribution of an abortion-inducing drug, disrupting public services, identity fraud and deception to obtain a dangerous drug, according to court documents.

MEDICAL GROUPS URGE KENNEDY, FDA TO REEXAMINE BROAD APPROVAL OF ABORTION DRUGS

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Hassan-James Abbas, a 32-year-old surgical resident at the University of Toledo, allegedly forced abortion pills down the mouth of his pregnant girlfriend.  (Google Maps; University of Toledo)

Hassan began a romantic relationship with the unnamed woman in 2024 after he separated from his wife, a notice of opportunity for hearing and summary suspension provided to Fox News Digital states.

On Dec. 7, 2024, when the woman — referred to as “Patient 1” — told Abbas she was pregnant, he told her he wanted her to get an abortion.

When the woman said she did not want one, Abbas allegedly ordered the abortion drugs mifepristone and misoprostol using his estranged wife’s identity without her knowledge. He later allegedly crushed the pills and attempted to force them into the woman’s mouth.

“Patient 1 woke up at 4:00 a.m. and saw that you were awake. She fell back asleep and then awoke to you physically on top of her,” the notice states. “She thought it was a hug, but then, holding her down, you took your fingers and forced a crushed powder inside her bottom lip, beside her gums. You continued to hold Patient 1 down.”

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The woman left and called 911, but Abbas allegedly took her phone. She went to a hospital, where she was told the medication had ended the pregnancy.

MAJOR PRO-LIFE GROUP DEMANDS INVESTIGATION INTO ABORTION PILL BILLBOARDS IN FLORIDA

Boxes of the drug mifepristone sit on a shelf at the West Alabama Women’s Center in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed)

Fox News Digital has reached out to Abbas’ attorney. 

The University of Toledo said Abbas was placed on administrative leave after his medical license was suspended in November. 

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In a statement to Fox News Digital, the State Medical Board of Ohio said it issued the notice of opportunity for hearing and summary suspension to Abbas Nov. 5.

“The matter under investigation by the state is unrelated to his role at UToledo,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “UToledo holds its employees to the highest standards of professional conduct and will cooperate with the state medical board’s investigative processes.

“A summary suspension suspends a license to practice prior to a hearing,” the statement said. “The suspension must be based on clear and convincing evidence that continued practice by the licensee poses a danger of immediate and serious harm to the public.”

The woman’s attorney told Fox News Digital that the case was one of the most “heinous” she’s been involved in. Kelle Saull said the University of Toledo and ProMedica, where he accepted a fellowship, knew about the allegations and did nothing.

“Additionally, the Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office has had this case under review for the better part of a year,” Saull said in a statement. “It wasn’t until the Ohio Medical Board took (immediate) action that my client finally started to get the results she deserves.”

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A hearing on the matter is scheduled for May 14-15, 2026, the board said.

“After the hearing, the Hearing Examiner will prepare a Report & Recommendation (R&R) that includes the basis for the hearing, the findings of fact, conclusions of law and a proposed disciplinary sanction for consideration by the Board members,” it said.

The notice said Abbas cannot practice medicine or perform surgeries and must refer his patients to other doctors. In addition, the medical board determined his continued practice of medicine presents a “danger of immediate and serious harm to the public.”

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Detroit, MI

Detroit-area teen charged in carjacking at Applebee’s restaurant bound over to circuit court

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Detroit-area teen charged in carjacking at Applebee’s restaurant bound over to circuit court



A 15-year-old boy who is accused of carjacking a woman last month at an Applebee’s in Roseville, Michigan, is heading to circuit court after waiving his preliminary examination, according to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office.

The teen is charged with one count of carjacking, third-degree fleeing a police officer, two counts of malicious destruction of personal property, assault with a dangerous weapon, assaulting/resisting/obstructing a police officer, operating without a license and failure to stop after a collision.

The teen appeared for a probable cause hearing on Dec. 10 and waived his right to a preliminary examination. He will be arraigned on Jan. 5, 2026. 

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He remains in at the Macomb County Juvenile Center under a $250,000 cash/surety bond. If he posts bond, he is ordered to wear a GPS tether, be restricted to his mother’s house and have no contact with the victim, witnesses or Applebee’s.

Prosecutors allege that on Nov. 24, 2025, the teen forcibly took a woman’s 2016 Jeep Patriot in the restaurant’s parking lot. The teen took off in the vehicle and crashed it on Gratiot Avenue.

“The allegations and charges in this matter are serious. Carjacking is a violent offense that carries life-altering consequences for victims and offenders alike,” Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido said in a statement. “To the young people of Macomb County, understand that the choices you make today will determine the path available to you tomorrow. We want every youth in this community to succeed, but that starts with stepping away from dangerous decisions before they lead to irreversible outcomes.”  



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Milwaukee, WI

Admirals lose to IceHogs, comeback bid falls short in Rockford

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Admirals lose to IceHogs, comeback bid falls short in Rockford


Goalie Laurent Brossoit stopped 33 shots – and scored a goal – to lead the Rockford IceHogs to a 5-3 win over the Milwaukee Admirals on Friday.

The loss extended the Admirals losing streak to four games.

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By the numbers:

With goalie Matt Murray pulled, the Admirals dumped the puck into the IceHogs zone from the red line. Brossoit tracked it down behind his goal and sailed a shot into the empty Milwaukee cage at 18:56 of the final frame.

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The teams waited until the second period to start scoring goals. IceHogs forward Nick Lardis started the scoring with a shorthanded goal at 1:18 of the second frame. He sent a wrist shot from the slot into the net just as Milwaukee had two players leave the penalty box.

Just 0:33 later, Rockford’s Brett Seney exited the penalty box and grabbed a loose puck at the Admirals blue line. He moved to the right circle and sent a shot over the glove of Admirals goalie Matt Murray at 1:51.

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Milwaukee got on the board with a power-play goal at 4:56 of the second frame. Oasiz Wiesblatt skated with the puck from the left point to the right circle and slid a pass to the crease. Daniel Carr redirected the puck past IceHogs goalie Brossoit for his team-leading tenth goal of the season, and seventh on the power play. Wiesblatt and Joakim Kemell assisted.

Rockford scored two more before the close of the second period. Martin Misiak scored his first pro goal at 15:39 and Jamie Engelbert added a 4-on-4 goal at 18:45 to give the IceHogs a 4-1 lead after two frames.

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The Admirals cut the deficit to 4-2 when Jake Lucchini scored his sixth goal of the season at 11:21 of the third period. Lucchini slammed a rebound of a Jordan Oesterle shot into the net. Cole O’Hara and Oesterle were awarded assists.

The Ads got within one just :36 later when O’Hara shot a blocked puck into the net from the right circle. Oesterle and Ryan Ufko assisted on the goal at 11:57 of the third period.

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Milwaukee returns to UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena to host the Chicago Wolves on Saturday, Dec. 13.

The Source: The Milwaukee Admirals provided this report.

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