John,
You did it! Less than 24 hours after thousands of SumOfUs members like you
flooded Walmart with messages and calls, the giant corporation stopped
selling its "All Lives Matter" merchandise in Canada. And less than a week
later, it dropped its racist shirts in the US, as well -- thanks to big
pressure from SumOfUs members.
"Black Lives Matter" has been the key rallying call in the US for the
fight for racial justice. In response, anti-black and racist groups have
used ‘All Lives Matter’ as a code and dog whistle to show they stand
against racial justice.
So when we saw that Walmart was selling ‘All Lives Matter’ merchandise, we
knew that we had to speak up. Thousands of you took action, and less than
a week later, Walmart has pulled the anti-black lives matter products off
its shelves.
Earlier this month, Walmart, like many big brands, put out a statement
saying that “Without question, Black Lives Matter.” But selling and
profiting from the sale of anti-Black Lives Matter merchandise is total
hypocrisy and rather than take responsibility, Walmart initially tried to
pass the buck. That was until thousands of SumOfUs members got involved!
This Walmart victory is not the first time we pushed companies to stop
selling hateful products. In 2018, after a sustained campaign, we got tech
company Shopify to ban hate groups like the Proud Boys from selling items
through its platform too.
And we have plans to do more long term campaigns targeting giant
corporations like Starbucks, AT&T, and Facebook that say they support
Black Lives Matter for good publicity, but act to uphold white supremacy
behind its boardroom.
Campaigns like this take time and resources and we are a small campaigning
organization pitted against the power of billion-dollar corporations --
this work simply can't happen without your support.
[ [link removed] ]Can you chip in a special monthly gift to ensure we continue to hold
corporations accountable?
Thanks for all you do,
Angus, Nick, Toni, Will, Vicky, and the team at SumOfUs
More information:
[ [link removed] ]'All Lives Matter' shirt removed from Walmart Canada's website after
backlash, CTV, June 25th, 2020
[ [link removed] ]Walmart discontinues sales of 'All Lives Matter' shirts following
backlash, The Guardian, June 30th, 2020
-----------------------------------------------------
Breaking: Walmart is selling "All Lives Matter" merchandise on its online
store.
The billion dollar corporation claims to support Black Lives Matter but is
profiting off a slogan used by racists.
Can you add your voice and call on Walmart to stop selling 'All Lives
Matter' products now?
[ [link removed] ] Message Walmart
This is the original email we sent to members:
"Black Lives Matter" has been the key rallying call in the United States
and Canada after the movement that rose up to protest the tragic deaths of
George Floyd.
But anti-black and racist groups have responded with their own slogan:
‘All Lives Matter’. It may sound harmless at first glance but this slogan
has become their rallying cry: a way to delegitimize the Black Lives
Matter movement -- threatening and intimidating those on the side of
racial justice.
John, we just discovered that Walmart is selling All Lives
Matter merchandise on its online store.
This multi-billion dollar corporation is helping promote a dangerous
counter-movement to Black Lives Matter and is skimming off some tidy
profits in the process.
Walmart is already under heavy pressure to take the merchandise off its
shelves and if we flood them with calls, emails, and comments on social
media, we can get them to stop selling these hateful products.
[ [link removed] ]Send an urgent message to Walmart calling on it to stop selling All
Lives Matter shirts now
Really make your voice heard by phoning Walmart too and leaving comments
social media demanding the company takes action:
* Phone Walmart directly: 1-800-328-0402
* [ [link removed] ]Leave Walmart a comment on Facebook
* [ [link removed] ]Send Walmart a Tweet
* [ [link removed] ]Leave a comment on Walmart's Instagram
At its face, the phrase "All Lives Matter" sounds benign -- but the people
that use the term, and context of which they use it makes it extremely
problematic.
All lives should matter equally, but in the our justice system they do
not. Black men are 2.5 times more likely to be killed by police than White
men.
So at its best, the phrase All Lives Matter pull the focus away from Black
Lives Matter.
At its worst, the phrase has become code and a dog whistle for racists
that stand for white supremacy.
Walmart knows the controversy around “All Lives Matter”, which is why it
is distancing from the product already -- saying that it's a third-party
seller's fault.
But ultimately the buck stops with Walmart: Walmart can pull these
products off its site today. And if we push them hard while the
controversy is all over the media, we can get them to stop selling these
shirts now.
[ [link removed] ]Message Walmart calling on it to stop selling All Lives Matter shirts
now
Really make your voice heard by calling Walmart too and leaving comments
social media demanding the company takes action:
* Phone Walmart directly: 1-800-328-0402
* [ [link removed] ]Leave Walmart a comment on Facebook
* [ [link removed] ]Send Walmart a Tweet
* [ [link removed] ]Leave a comment on Walmart's Instagram
In response to unprecedented waves of protests since George Floyd’s
murder, Walmart, like many big brands, put out a statement saying “Without
question, Black Lives Matter.” But selling and profiting from the sale of
anti-Black Lives Matter merchandise is total hypocrisy.
We won against corporations that profit off hate before. After relentless
pressure, we got Shopify to ban hate groups like the Proud Boys from
selling items through its platform. And if we call all Walmart to drop its
“All Lives Matter” merchandise now, we can win another victory on
corporations profiting off hate again.
[ [link removed] ] Message Walmart
Thanks for all that you do,
Angus, Nick, and the team at SumOfUs
More information:
[ [link removed] ]Walmart Canada investigating after outrage over 'All Lives Matter,'
'Blue Lives Matter' apparel, CBC, June 23rd, 2020
SumOfUs is a worldwide movement of people like you, working together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable path for our global economy.
Please help keep SumOfUs strong by chipping in $3. [link removed]
