Coca-Cola deletes photos of gay rights protest against its Sochi 2014 sponsorship
After inexplicably publishing them, Coca-Cola has now removed photographs published of activists protesting against its Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics sponsorship.
Reported on an online blog from one of the demonstrators, the campaign which took place in Brighton on Saturday December 21 has found its way onto the Coca-Cola’s official website.
Links to photos from the demonstration had been published via the company’s CokeZone website, which could be accessed with links provided through the hosting service, Click-It.
The photographs have now disappeared from the page, and have been replaced with generic images of the Christmas Truck, which is at the heart of its advertising campaign.
Tatchell, who coordinated the campaign, said: “Coke is sponsoring the Sochi Winter Olympics, without even a murmur of unease at the anti-gay and repressive policies of the Putin government. It is shameful acquiescence with oppression.
“By sponsoring the Sochi Winter Olympics, Coca-Cola is rewarding the Putin regime, giving it legitimacy and credibility.
“It is shocking that Coca Cola has not been willing to make any statement of support for LGBT equality or for other human rights in Russia.”
In August, AllOut created a form allowing users to easily send a message to Coca Cola management urging them to speak out publicly against Russia’s anti-gay legislation.
