Ben & Jerry’s Accusing Parent Company, Unilever, of Censoring It
The world-famous ice-cream brand, Ben & Jerry’s, has taken its parent company to court, accusing it of trying to censor its social mission.
Founded in 1978 by Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield in a renovated gas station, the company has always followed a path of social consciousness. However, this has put it at odds with its parent company, Unilever, which bought it in 2000.
The relationship between the two companies deteriorated so much that Ben & Jerry’s filed a lawsuit against Unilever in November. In details that have now been made public, in particular, the ice-cream company said Unilever “silenced its attempts to express support for Palestinian refugees and end military aid to Israel, and threatening to dismantle its independent board”, says Reuters.
Ben & Jerry’s also added to their complaint that a post meant to be made public on Donald Trump’s on Inauguration Day was barred from going live by Unilever ice cream chief Peter ter Kulve. The post, which Reuters says “discussed hot-button issues such as abortion, climate change, minimum wages and universal healthcare”.
It was a joint project by Ben & Jerry’s management, board and Unilever's global head of litigation. Ben & Jerry's argue that it was barred simply because it mentioned Donald Trump, and this ignored the company’s years of challenging the political status-quo.
The complaint stated that according to ter Kulve, "despite four decades of progressive social activism - and years of challenging the Trump administration’s policies specifically - criticizing Trump was now too taboo for the brand synonymous with 'Peace, Love, and Ice Cream.'"
Ben & Jerry’s is seeking $25 million of payments from Unilever to go to groups chosen by the ice-cream company; and also wants its board freed to act independently to let the company continue its social mission.
