On Monday, in the wake of the shooting of Daunte Wright in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, on Sunday, the ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s, famous for its championing of left-wing causes, tweeted that America’s police system “can’t be reformed” and “must be dismantled.”
Ben & Jerry’s wrote, “The murder of #DaunteWright is rooted in white supremacy and results from the international criminalization of Black and Brown communities. This system can’t be reformed. It must be dismantled and a real system of public safety rebuilt from the ground up. #DefundThePolice.”
The murder of #DaunteWright is rooted in white supremacy and results from the intentional criminalization of Black and Brown communities.
This system can’t be reformed.
It must be dismantled and a real system of public safety rebuilt from the ground up.#DefundThePolice
— Ben & Jerry's (@benandjerrys) April 12, 2021
The officer who shot Wright, Kim Potter, who resigned in the wake of the incident after 26 years on the police force, reportedly meant to fire her taser at Wright but mistakenly used her gun. USA Today reported:
Potter’s body-worn camera footage shows her standing behind Wright’s vehicle as one officer approaches the driver’s side and another approaches the passenger side. As Wright gets out of the car, the officer on the driver’s side begins to arrest him but appears to stop. Potter steps forward and grabs Wright’s arm. Wright then appears to reenter the driver’s seat as a struggle ensues.
Potter is seen pulling out her firearm and aiming at Wright as she shouts “Taser” multiple times. After she fires and Wright drives away, she said, “Oh (expletive), I just shot him.”
In December 2020, as The Daily Wire reported, former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick announced his joint venture with Ben & Jerry’s for a new flavor titled, “Change the Whirled.” The Daily Wire noted, “All the proceeds from the ice cream will be funneled to Kaepernick’s anti-police foundation ‘Know Your Rights Camp’ and matched by millionaires Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield’s company.”
Kaepernick tweeted, “I’ve teamed up with [Ben & Jerry’s] to serve up joy on the journey to justice! Today, we’re excited to introduce Change the Whirled, a new non-dairy flavor that hits shelves in early-2021! 100% of my proceeds will go to [Know Your Rights Camp] with matching support from Ben & Jerry’s.”
In November 2019, Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream announced a new unofficial flavor honoring Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). “Ben Cohen, who co-founded the famed ice cream brand, announced Friday the creation of ‘Bernie’s Back,’ following a similar release during the last Democratic presidential primary,” reported The Hill.
In September 2019, Ben & Jerry’s introduced the flavor “Justice Remix’d.” They stated in a press release, “The iconic ice cream company has partnered with Advancement Project National Office to launch Justice ReMix’d, a flavor created to spotlight structural racism in a broken criminal legal system.”
The Daily Wire noted, “The Advancement Project National Office supports far-left criminal justice reform by pushing deeply tendentious talking points like the ‘school-to-prison pipeline.’”
“Our country needs to invest in services that build up communities rather than those that tear them down,” said the organization’s executive director, Judith Browne Dianis. “That means ending a wealth-based pre-trial detention system that locks people up because they are poor, black or brown. It means dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline, divesting from criminalizing students and investing in the creation of high-quality education and services. It’s time to reimagine safety and justice.”
In October 2018, Ben & Jerry’s unveiled “Pecan Resist.” The company tweeted, “Today we launch Pecan Resist! This flavor supports groups creating a more just and equitable nation for us all, and who are fighting President Trump’s regressive agenda.”
Today we launch Pecan Resist! This flavor supports groups creating a more just and equitable nation for us all, and who are fighting President Trump’s regressive agenda. Learn more and take action here >> https://t.co/Bi8YE1FvOZ pic.twitter.com/Kr6CKBX1sc
— Ben & Jerry's (@benandjerrys) October 30, 2018
Meanwhile, Haagen-Daz sold its ice cream in the old-fashioned way:
Buy @HaagenDazs_US, not the communist brand. pic.twitter.com/MznwnNrdmp
— David Reaboi (@davereaboi) April 14, 2021