'Donald Trump can't make us buy your stuff,' Rev. Al Sharpton warns companies
Donald Trump was a vote-getter at the polls but he's not doing so well as a consumer magnet. Four of ten Americans say theyhave shifted their spending as backlash against companies that have changed their policies to align with the Trump Administration, a new poll finds.
A recent Harris poll found that aquarter (24%) of respondents have even stopped shopping at their favorite stores because of their politics (Black: 35%, gen Z: 32%, Democratic: 31%), according to a Guardian report.
Democrats are more likely to see their wallets as a substitute for a voting card, with 50% saying they're changing their spending habits, compared with 41% of Republicans and 40% of Independents.
Target was one of the first to feel the pinch. After it ended some of its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, it encountered blowback from liberal consumers and was disinvited from participating in the Pride festival in Minneapolis, its hometown.
Two can play
Boycotts are a double-edged sword, as Republicans demonstrated during the Biden presidency. Bud Light lost an estimated $395 million when Trump fans boycotted it for partnering with transgender influencer Dylvan Mulvaney for a social media post.
It may be difficult for liberal boycotts to have too much effect, however, simply because so many businesses have started pulling back from taking a leadership role in equity struggles.
Walmart, McDonald's and other household names are potential target victims while other companies, including Costco, Microsoft and Apple have all said they have no plan to cut back on their DEI policies.
Adding to the confusion is a growing feeling among consumers that they have had enough of just about everything. They're opting out of the news and politics and many are also trying to opt out of the economy -- buying as little as possible so as not to reward companies they feel have done them wrong.
The Rev. Al Sharpton has promised to sharpen the boycott focus a bit. He said last month that his National Action Network has been studying which companies have backed out of their DEI commitments and will select two of them to focus on.
Donald Trump cant make us buy your stuff. The Senate cant make us buy your stuff, Sharpton said at a speech last month. In the name of Dr [Martin Luther King Jr], were going to do what King did.
Posted: 2025-02-18 23:11:03
