Consumer Boycotts

[Desertrose2023]

I posted the BDS list in the supporting Palestinian businesses thread and recent discussion on another thread re the backlash against Zara got me wondering how many others are participating in consumer boycotts linked to the conflict in Gaza (and the occupation in Palestine) or for different reasons.

there are a number of brands I’m boycotting usually for a mix of reasons, political, environmental and social. Interested to hear views from others.

Disclaimer: to avoid any misinterpretation or twisting of my words - I do not support any acts of violence or vandalism or boycotting based on religion/ethnicity.

all the ones on the BDS committee list

https://bdsmovement.net/

in addition to a few others (sample below)

Starbucks: overpriced shit coffee and they recently sued their union for tweeting in support/solidarity with Palestine.

Zara: I stopped buying stuff following the controversy of their head womenswear designer making disgusting anti-Palestinian comments. The reports of slave labour (Uyghurs and in Brazil) plus the recent tone deaf ad campaign was the final straw. Plus trying to be more conscious re reducing how much ‘fast fashion’ I buy anyway.

Nestle: a history of unethical corporate practices plus including ownership of an Israeli food company with production in OPT.

Despite your personal belief to the contrary, it's not an illegal occupation.

If you're so passionate about this sort of thing, I hope you're up in Scotland boycotting English goods and services.

I’m not sure what your problem is tbh? If you disagree with the concept of consumer boycotting of certain Israeli goods/companiws then why don’t you engage in a discussion instead of whataboutery on a tangential point and insulting a dead cartoonist?

I looked up the AMA thread by the way, I assume it’s the one by the Jewish Israeli woman you’re referring to? if it is then it’s a nice and interesting thread. Even if I disagree with some of the OP’s views (and actually agree with a lot of what she’s saying) I have respect for the way she’s conducting herself and for the way she posts. I wish more of the pro-Israeli posters on the conflict board acted that way.

Ah, ok. It’s not an illegal occupation. You might want to let the UK foreign office know? Also the UN and the majority of countries globally. That should keep you busy.

https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/the-occupied-palestinian-territories

I'm not disputing that they're occupied. You say illegally occupied.

I'm also boycotting and a lot healthier for it!

I used to have a can of diet coke every other day and struggled to stop. Now I stopped without weaning off and feel a lot better for it.

A lot of these companies that support Israel pump out junk food.

It was only a matter of time before Israel was blamed for the obesity epidemic.

My DH has struggled with giving up Diet Coke, he was an addict 🤣
someone recommended this as an alternative. It’s meant to taste good but on the expensive side.

https://hellomamma.co.uk/product/molecola-classica-glass-bottle

Am boycotting Zara and avoiding products which say ‘Made in Israel’. Hunting down dates was a challenge but I managed. I daresay none of these businesses care but it makes me feel a tiny bit better.

I am sure loads of what I buy still funds the Israel economy. It is like climate change I guess in the sense that you do little bits to a degree that you can, and hope it makes a difference. I am not deluding myself that I am doing the best I can however, or that these businesses give a shit about me.

I remember in the 80s, many families including ours boycotted S African goods and it apparently made a difference so who knows. I don’t think the boycott of Israeli products is as widespread here.

My daughter is finding it a bit difficult at university. So many of the students en masse are boycotting Starbucks, McD and many many other companies who they say have connections to Israel. Way more extreme than my own boycotts. The latest is Pret. She has quite a limited diet due to health problems so I have said she needs to be pragmatic about what she chooses to boycott and prioritise her health.

I think companies do care. Negative news impacts their ESG rating which for some is very important because their investors care about that.

even if overall it doesn’t make a huge (or any) dent to their profit margins, sometimes the boycotting is about you and not them. You have the peace of mind that your money isn’t going to support unethical practices. It’s worth it just for that reason in my opinion.

Also don’t be sure it’s not making a difference to some eg starbucks’ have lost $12 billion in value since this started, and arguably some of that is due to the boycotts.

@Desertrose2023 yes I saw some articles about branches of Zara and Starbucks that have shut down after losing millions / billions.

Back in the 80s, I was always protesting about South African apartheid and boycotting stuff, going on rallies, chanting, etc.

My wake-up call was finding myself stuck in the company of two white South African males for a fortnight.

Realising that I was prejudiced against them because of my prejudices about how life worked in their country, and actually learning about the reality, was very humbling.

@Pizdietz so are you implying you became pro-apartheid for South Africa?

DH and i haven't bought Coke, McDonald's and starbucks which is a favourite for us. It's actually not been that hard considering why we're doing it. Finding it harder to boycott clothing stores.

No. I just realised that my binary goodies/baddies way of looking at the situation was naive and oversimplified.

For example, they played a basketball match against their black friends; the following week, the basketball court was closed down.

I realised how racist I was being, by assuming they were racist, when the real situation was more nuanced than that.

So you are implying we all think that Israelis are racist?

If that is your implication then you are absolutely wrong.

In town yesterday made a point of going to Zara, precisely because how dare a bunch of masked thugs try to dictate which shops we should go to

Good for you. Enjoy while it lasts, which will be about 2 washes.

The boycotts against South Africa were to fight South Africa’s system of institutional racism. The boycotts were about state policy not individual people. They were also about bringing to the attention of those individuals within South Africa who supported the policies that they were not ok with the rest of the world and there were consequences to living in/benefiting from such state policies. That’s what you’re missing. Just because some people choose to boycott Israel doesn’t mean they hate all Israelis.

@Desertrose2023 well said, this.

You do realise that you are a being a phenomenal hypocrite, encouraging BDS by using a device that would not function without Israeli technology and software?

Not necessarily, although apparently casual dismissal of Israeli concerns can sometimes come across that way.

I remember going to a job interview in my 20s and being asked what newspaper I read. Of course, it was The Guardian. The interviewers asked if I thought people tended to be more left-wing when young and gradually more right-wing as they get older, and I said I didn't know. I still don't know: personally, I don't read newspapers any more, not trusting mainstream media! - but I do think that as the decades go by, there is a tendency in life to move away from naive idealism and towards something more jaded cynical reality-based.

I have no particular interest in politics, which is all bullshit. Instead, what I think has happened in my case is that I've gradually stopped feeling as though what I think/believe/say/do is of any importance in the greater scheme of things. Everything tends to move in cycles and unfold at its own pace. Change happens slowly, quickly, inevitably, relentlessly, and pays no heed to what I think is right or wrong.

Oreos, Kit Kat, Doritos - but I need to get healthier anyway! Gillette, Amazon, Colgate, L;Oreal, Nivea, Garnier - but I don't like animal testing and am hypersensitive to chemicals in cosmetics as well. Generally I think that if you try to buy ethical and sustainable it's best anyway,