Brands and business leaders alike are condemning Wednesday’s attack on Capitol Hill after a group of rioters stormed the Capitol in an attempt to stop Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election, offering both strong rebukes and head-scratching.
To date, four people and a U.S. Capitol Police officer have died as a result of Wednesday’s attack, which was incited by Donald Trump after he made a speech falsely claiming the 2020 presidential election was stolen. While some companies have had to make statements because their employees were among the rioters who have since been fired, most brands are getting ahead of the fray to assure their customers and investors on which side of history they stand.
Axe’s participation, in a roundabout way, made sense. The brand retweeted a photograph of a lone can of Axe body spray left amid the wreckage enacted by the mob.
Who would’ve thought?
But Axe was far from the only brand that condemned Wednesday’s attack. The Business Roundtable, which is composed of CEOs from some of the biggest companies in the U.S., spoke out against the violence.
Coca-Cola, Chevron, Verizon, Boeing, and Bank of America all released their own statements condemning the violence at the Capitol.
Ben & Jerry’s, which has never shied away from being political, calling out systemic racism, and supporting progressive causes, released a lengthy thread calling out the hypocrisy of how the mostly white rioters were treated by police versus when Black and brown protesters are treated when protesting peacefully. It also demanded Trump’s removal from office, whether that be through impeachment or the use of the 25th Amendment.
Disney’s statement came from CEO Bob Chapek, who called for the nation to move forward. Notably, the CEO of Marvel Entertainment (which Disney owns), Ike Perlmutter, is an avid Trump supporter and donor who became a major influence over the Department of Veteran Affairs.
While it’s not necessarily out of place for brands to speak up in this matter, it is a bit of a head-scratcher. It’s a similar move to what many brands did over the summer when they spoke out in support of Black Lives Matter over the summer with similar motives. It’s a way to ensure their customers that they’re against bigotry and tyranny. Yet, as those companies condemn the rioters, many of them have supported the politicians and causes that continue to erode certain foundations of democracy.
