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Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen mentioned Tuesday that father or mother firm Unilever prevented the ice cream maker from making a “flavor for Palestine.”
Cohen and the Vermont-based ice-cream maker are recognized for social activism, usually supporting Palestinians and criticizing Israel.
“Unilever / Magnum stopped Ben & Jerry’s from creating a flavor for Palestine — so I’m doing it myself,” Cohen wrote on X, referring to Magnum Ice Cream, Unilever’s ice cream unit.
“I’ve got a watermelon, an empty pint, and I need your help: Name the flavor or suggest ingredients. Or design the pint packaging,” he continued.
BEN & JERRY’S COFOUNDER LEAVES BUSINESS AFTER 47 YEARS, CLAIMING HE’S BEEN ‘SILENCED’ BY UNILEVER
Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen alleged father or mother firm Unilever “stopped” the ice cream maker from creating an ice cream “flavor for Palestine.” (Lisa Lake for MoveOn / Getty Photos)
Watermelons have turn into a logo of Palestinian solidarity as a result of their crimson, inexperienced, black and white colours match the the Palestinian flag.
“Here I am making something that’s actually pretty important. The scale of suffering of the Palestinian people over the last two years has been unimaginable. So the ceasefire is a welcome relief, but there’s much more work to do to rebuild. Palestinians are still living under occupation, still recovering from years of suffering, especially Palestinian children,” Cohen mentioned in a video posted to X.
“They deserve dignity, safety, and the same rights that every human being should have,” he continued. “A while back, Ben & Jerry’s tried to make a flavor to call for peace in Palestine, to stand for justice and dignity for everyone, like Ben & Jerry’s always has. But they weren’t allowed to, they were stopped by Unilever/Magnum, the company that owns Ben and Jerry’s. Just like when Ben & Jerry’s tried to stop selling ice cream in the occupied territories, they were blocked again by their parent company. So I’m doing what they couldn’t.”
Cohen mentioned he’s now making a watermelon-flavored ice cream that “calls for permanent peace in Palestine and calls for repairing all the damage that was done there.”
Watermelons are sometimes used as a logo of assist for Palestinians since their colours match the colours of the Palestinian flag. (Photograph by Win McNamee/Getty Photos / Getty Photos)
“I’m doing this to shine a light on the experience of Palestinian people, and children in particular, so the world does not look the other way,” he mentioned.
Fox Enterprise has reached out to Unilever for remark.
In Might, Cohen was faraway from a Senate Well being, Schooling, Labor and Pensions Committee listening to with Well being and Human Companies Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for protesting in opposition to the Israel-Hamas struggle in Gaza.
“Congress pays for bombs,” Cohen shouted on the time.
“I told Congress they’re killing poor kids in Gaza by buying bombs, and they’re paying for it by kicking poor kids off Medicaid in the US,” Cohen added on the time on X.
BEN & JERRY’S CRIES FOUL AS PARENT COMPANY FIRES CEO FOR POLITICAL ACTIVISM
Ben Cohen and the Vermont-based ice-cream maker are recognized for social activism. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Photos))
Ben & Jerry’s co-founder, Jerry Greenfield, just lately introduced he’s leaving the corporate after 47 years, saying Unilever had “silenced” the ice cream maker on social points.
Cohen mentioned after Greenfield’s announcement that “his legacy deserves to be true to our values, not silenced.”
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Earlier this yr, Ben & Jerry’s additionally claimed that Unilever unlawfully fired CEO David Stever over his social activism, violating its merger settlement.
