(USNewsMag.com) – On July 4, Ben & Jerry’s shared their latest idea on Twitter, to “commit to returning” the land the United States was founded on to Indigenous people, calling it “stolen land.” The post went on to say that July 4 celebrations were just a distraction from the “essential truth about this nation’s birth.”
The ice cream company suggested first returning Mount Rushmore to the Lakota, sharing the history of the site and why it is significant to indigenous Americans. In the post, Ben & Jerry’s stated Mount Rushmore contains the faces of those who denied “Indigenous people their basic rights.”
The post discussed the 1980 Supreme Court ruling which awarded the Sioux tribe $105 million in damages after it was found Mount Rushmore was on stolen land. The Sioux tribe refused the money.
The tweet, which had about 5,000 likes, had some Twitter users calling for a boycott of the company. Country musician John Rich tweeted to “Make @benndjerrys Bud Light again.” Some users suggested that the company start by donating their land back to the indigenous people.
The company posted the message on Twitter despite their criticism of the platform. In June, Ben & Jerry’s stopped advertising on Twitter saying they were concerned with the platform’s content moderation and “hate speech” since Elon Musk purchased the social media platform.
This is not the first time Ben & Jerry’s has spoken out in support of far-left political issues, with its website clearly defining the company’s social mission to “eliminate injustices in our communities” by incorporating the issues into their business. The Burlington, Vermont-based company, founded in 1978, often takes to social media to share their opinions about political issues.
The company has publicly supported “Black Lives Matter” as well as causes in the LGBTQ+ community. The company faced boycotts in 2021 after it stopped selling ice cream in what it called “Occupied Palestinian Territory” in Israel. During the 2016 and 2020 presidential primaries, the company publicly supported Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
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