Time for companies to consider their association with the genocide in Gaza.
Now might be a pretty good time for companies to consider their brand exposure & association with the murder of innocent civilians in Gaza.
Even if your company is so ubiquitous that it’s immune from consumer boycotts, how do your employees feel about your stance to the slaughter of civilians in Gaza? Do you even have one?
Amazon & Google
Long before 7th October, Amazon & Google employees started protesting the use of their cloud infrastructure to enable the Israeli military and apartheid… it’s hard to imagine them feeling more proud now.
See No Tech For Apartheid
Airbnb
Even for companies which want to make ethical choices, it’s not easy. Airbnb tried to delist homes located inside settlements in the West Bank but caved to legal pressure, and now finds itself in the UN General Assembly’s database of companies infringing the rights of Palestinians.
Global franchises
And then there are the more egregious faux-pas:
Maybe they got wrapped up in the whole “patriotism” thing at the time, but McDonalds sponsoring IDF soldiers with free meals, is not a good look when the other side is starving.
Not to be outdone, Pizza Hut jumped on the bandwagon too.
Often these US franchises are actually are locally owned companies, with a franchise agreement, but consumers only see the global brand.
Meanwhile, despite having no stores in Israel, Starbucks is still struggling with the legacy of Howard Shultz’s support for Zionism:
So much so, that Starbucks Middle East feel the need for a dedicated PR page:
Bottom-line: if you haven’t already made ethical choices, it’s probably a good time to rethink where you stand.
