Blue Lives Matter, a group of active and retired law enforcement officials, is asking all Americans to boycott Ben & Jerry's.
The group issued the boycott after the ice cream company released a public statement asking people to "not (be) complicit" to systemic racism and injustice.
"It's been hard to watch the list of unarmed black Americans killed by law enforcement officers grow longer and longer," Ben & Jerry's wrote. "We understand that numerous black Americans and white Americans have profoundly different experiences and outcomes with law enforcement and the criminal justice system. That's why it's become clear to us at Ben & Jerry's that we have a moral obligation to take a stand now for justice and for black lives."
Ben & Jerry's also released a list titled "7 Ways We Know Systemic Racism Is Real," which included a subsection identifying disparities in the criminal justice system.
But Blue Lives Matter disagreed with Ben and Jerry's' stance.
"Ben & Jerry's went beyond making a statement in support of civil rights when they actively accused law enforcement of widespread racism," a Blue Lives Matter representative wrote on the group's official website. "By spreading these false and misleading statements, Ben & Jerry's lends an appearance of legitimacy to the baseless claims that police officers are killing men based on the color of their skin. This message has inspired the assassination and attempted assassination of police officers, and it costs officers their lives."
Ben & Jerry's attempted to address concerns that the company was pointing the finger at law enforcement in its initial statement.
"We want to be clear: We believe that saying black lives matter is not to say that the lives of those who serve in the law enforcement community don't," the company wrote. "We respect and value the commitment to our communities that those in law enforcement make, and we respect the value of every one of their lives. We do not place the blame for this on individual officers. Rather, we believe it is due to the systemic racism built into the fabric of our institutions at every level, disadvantaging and discriminating against people of color in ways that go beyond individual intent to discriminate."
But Blue Lives Matter said the Ben & Jerry's campaign is "dangerous."
"By not only attacking law enforcement, but openly supporting Black Lives Matter, Ben & Jerry's is sure to anger most Americans who do not agree with the political causes that they are supporting," the group said.
About the Author
