Some brand solidarity messages are more convincing than others

As corporate messages go, "the murder of George Floyd was the result of inhumane police brutality that is perpetuated by a culture of white supremacy" is on the blunter side of what is more often a fuzzy norm.

The tweet by ice-cream purveyors Ben & Jerry’s on Tuesday linked to a longer statement that made several specific calls for US legislation and policy measures that might help dismantle white supremacy, or at least put a dent in it. Ben & Jerry’s had thought about this.

Inevitably, its unequivocal stance made some Twitter users with flags in their account names angry enough at the makers of Phish Food and Caramel Chew Chew to issue boycott vows. But it was also singled out for praise. "The only corporate messaging worth reading" was the verdict of Los Angeles writer Kara Brown.

Notwithstanding the sale of the company by its eponymous hippy founders to consumer goods giant Unilever back in 2000, Ben & Jerry's was deemed to have earned a certain credibility in its support for Black Lives Matter and other causes in a way that other, less consistent brands have not.

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When Amazon declared its "solidarity with the Black community – our employees, customers and partners", it was as if it had forgotten its own history of suppressing its employees' desperate bids to unionise, including its recent firing of Chris Smalls, a black warehouse worker in New York, after he organised a walkout over coronavirus safety concerns.

Cosmetics brand L'Oréal posted a similar message on Instagram, saying it "stands in solidarity with the Black community, and against injustice of any kind". This was news to model Munroe Bergdorf, who was dropped from a L'Oréal beauty campaign in 2017 after writing a Facebook post about all white people benefitting from systemic racism. "You do NOT get to do this," was just part of her vigorous response to L'Oréal's use of the Black Lives Matter hashtag.

Elsewhere, it was noted that some companies expressing their horror at the killing of George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis were actually significant donors to US politicians not exactly known for their support of civil rights organisations. In corporate marketing, it seems the rule is that it is best to say something, even if that something is superficial and steeped in hypocrisy.