A boycott is the consumer equivalent of saying "I hate you," and Trump supporters have made sure they've voiced their disagreement with various brands. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the political act is defined as "the refusal and incitement to refusal to have commercial or social dealings with anyone on whom it is wished to bring pressure." And the list of things Trump fans have boycotted unthinkably includes some necessities, like Netflix and Skittles, among other things.
From internet services to candy, Trump supporters have called to boycott brands that are so massive that boycotting one product may not necessarily affect other products from the same company. For instance, Trump fans called for the boycott of Pepsi after PepsiCO CEO Indra Nooyi stated that her employees were worrying for their safety after learning about the Trump's campaign's stances on immigration, women's rights, and race. So Trump supporters went ahead and called for the boycott of Pepsi. But they might not realize that Pepsi falls under PepsiCo, which also offers Lipton, Mountain Dew, Cheetos, Doritos, Lay's, Gatorade, Tropicana juices, Quaker Oats, and much more.
Here's a list of other things Trump supporters have boycotted so far. And as a fair warning, it's pretty extensive.
1. Netflix
When the CEO of Netflix, Reed Hastings, said "Trump would destroy much of what is great about America," Trump fans called for a boycott of Netflix on Twitter.
In an open letter on Facebook, Hastings criticized the travel ban and put emphasis on the need to "link arms together to protect American values of freedom and opportunity."
2. Macy's
When chairman Terry Lundgren discontinued Trump's menswear line from Macy's after Trump's demeaning statements about Mexican immigrants, Trump fans called for a boycott of Macy's.
The Street reported that Lundgren stood by the decision to end ties with Trump. During an interview with The Street, he explained that it comes down to staying out of politics:
If Hillary Clinton had a line of women's suits or handbags I wouldn't carry those either. I just think we don't want to be a politically associated company, we sell to everybody at Macy's and have a broad and diverse customer base.
3. GrubHub
GrubHub CEO, Matt Maloney, sent a company-wide email criticizing what he found to be Trump's discriminatory positions on immigrants and minorities, saying that those views have "no place at GrubHub."
In reaction to that, Trump fans started the #BoycottGrubHub hashtag on Twitter. The Wall Street Journal reported that Maloney backtracked on his criticism of Trump. In a press release published on GrubHub's website, Maloney responded to the criticism saying, "I want to clarify that I did not ask for anyone to resign if they voted for Trump. I would never make such a demand." He added that GrubHub "does not discriminate on the basis of someone's principles, or political or other beliefs."
4. Oreos
Yes. Oreos. When Oreos was reported to have moved its production to Mexico, fury spread across Trump's fanbase.
According to the Chicago Tribune, executives at Mondelez International - the company behind Oreo - stated they could save up to $46 million annually by moving to Salinas, Mexico. But it wasn't just Trump supporters who called to boycott the cookie; Trump himself promised to never have another Oreo.
5. CNN
Time Warner's subsidiary news channel, CNN, seems to have reserved a place in the ever-growing list of companies boycotted by Trump fans.
It remains a target of criticism from many conservative pundits, including Sean Hannity, for alleged "anti-Trump bias."
6. Dell
The controversy took place when Dell Technologies announced its plan to slash 2,000 to 3,000 local jobs after its acquisition of EMC Corporation. In an email to Bloomberg, Dell spokesman Dave Farmer explained the decision:
As is common with deals of this size, there will be some overlaps we will need to manage and where some employee reduction will occur. We will do everything possible to minimize the impact on jobs. We expect revenue gains will outweigh any cost savings, and revenue growth drives employment growth.
7. Starbucks
After Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz commented on Trump's campaign, calling it a "vitriolic display of bigotry and hate and divisiveness" in an all-staff memo, Trump supporters went ahead and boycotted Starbucks.
Schultz also wrote an open letter condemning Trump's travel ban while announcing that Starbucks would employ "10,000 refugees over five years from 75 countries." Some called for "Operation #TrumpCup" by telling employees to write "Trump" as their names on their drinks. This was supposed to shake America to its core. Or something.
8. Amazon
When Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos stated that Trump "erodes our democracy around the edges," Trump supporters demanded a boycott of Amazon.
9. Skittles
When the Mars company, producer of Skittles, responded to a tweet from Donald Trump Jr., it won support from anti-Trump activists and drew the ire of Trump fans by tweeting, "Skittles are candy; refugees are people. It's an inappropriate analogy. We respectfully refrain from further comment, as that could be misinterpreted as marketing." Subsequently, several Trump fans decided to boycott the rainbow-colored candy.
In contrast, there have been boycotts against Trump as well. According to The Daily Dot, activist Shannon Coulter created a list of stores that conduct business with Trump under the hashtag #GrabYourWallet. This list provides the name of some 50 brands. There's some overlap as well; some companies are actually boycotted by both Trump fans and Trump critics.
Ultimately, the boycott movements from both sides show how corporate America, no matter how hard it strives to appear politically neutral, still gets caught in the crosshairs of political banter.
