Buckle up, everyone: right-wingers are angry at Oreos now
Nabisco Oreo billboard with two girls watching TV circa 1950 in Los Angeles, California (Photo by Gary Leonard/Corbis via Getty Images)
In recent years, right-wing bigots have repeatedly decreed their desire to ‘boycott’ certain companies due to their association with the LGBTQ+ community, and popular biscuit brand Oreo is the latest in a long line.
A nonprofit conservative watchdog has accused Oreo of “grooming children” because of its longstanding partnership with PFLAG, a LGBTQ+ advocacy group that is dedicated to supporting and educating LGBTQ+ people and their families.
The National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC) recently published a 30-second video titled “Is Oreo… Grooming Children?” in which it pointed to a number of books featuring LGBTQ+ content that are available in a number of libraries and bookstores across the U.S and endorsed by PFLAG.
Following their video, a press release by the NLPC said that Oreo has developed an “inappropriate relationship” with PFLAG and that the advocacy group “condones gender transition treatments for children as young as three years old, and battles to make sure books with explicit content are allowed in public schools and libraries”.
“The nonprofit corporate watchdog and shareholder activist initiated its campaign to highlight the cookie-maker’s inappropriate relationship with PFLAG after it noticed the brand’s social media accounts – primarily on X.com (formerly Twitter) – were heavily populated with posts in support of PFLAG’s various narratives, causes and social advocacy,” the NLPC said.
It also suggested that it would support a shareholder proposal at the company’s “annual meeting in May” to cut ties with the advocacy group as it “owns stock in Oreo’s parent company, Mondelez International”.
In a statement, Paul Chesser, director of NLPC’s Corporate Integrity Project, pointed to companies like Bud Light, Disney, and Target, who have all been supportive of the LGBTQ+ community which led to their “extensive brand destruction”, and said that Oreo is “taking it[self] down the same dangerous path”.
“We urge Mondelez to terminate Oreo’s controversial relationships before its too late,” Chesser added.
This cookie controversy echoes furious scenes in April 2023. Right-wingers called for a boycott of the beer brand Bud Light, leading to people smashing displays in public, bars refusing to sell the beer, and musician Kid Rock shooting cans of the beer on video, after transgender social media star Dylan Mulvaney promoted the brand on her Instagram account.
The chief executive of Bud Light’s parent company later said they would “continue to support” the LGBTQ+ community, as they have since 1998.
Similarly, Target’s 2023 Pride Collection was pulled from stores following threats by right-wing extremists who were angry at the store supporting the LGBTQ+ community – and the community was not happy with Target’s lacklustre response – while Build-a-Bear’s drag queen teddy bear scandalised bigots everywhere.
Looking further back, Disney Channel faced criticism from right-wingers in 2017 after announcing that the teen-focused show Andi Mack would include a gay storyline, with the anti-LGBTQ+ campaign group One Million Moms asking supporters to sign a pledge “stating you will not support Disney unless they produce family-friendly entertainment”.
The long list of brands that have faced backlash from right-wingers over their LGBTQ+ storylines, adverts, or merchandise, includes Hallmark, Coco-Cola, Nike, Tampax, Adidas, Primark, Doritos, and now – Oreos.
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