NEW YORK — Tractor Supply is ending an array of corporate diversity and climate efforts, a move coming after weeks of online conservative backlash against the rural retailer.
![Tractor Supply DEI](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/0c/b0c95213-ce7a-5445-aca1-2357ee673e55/667f1bb749ef1.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
A Tractor Supply Company sign is pictured Feb. 2, 2023, in Pittsburgh. The company announced Thursday that it is ending an array of corporate diversity and climate efforts, after weeks of conservative backlash against the rural retailer.
Tractor Supply said it would be eliminating all of its diversity, equity and inclusion roles while retiring current DEI goals. It did not elaborate on what was entailed in eliminating DEI roles.
The company added that it would “stop sponsoring nonbusiness activities” such as Pride festivals or voting campaigns — and no longer submit data to the Human Rights Campaign, the largest advocacy group for LGBTQ+ rights in the U.S.
The Brentwood, Tennessee-based retailer, which sells products ranging from farming equipment to pet supplies, also said in a statement Thursday that it would withdraw from its carbon emission goals to instead “focus on our land and water conservation efforts.”
People are also reading…
These changes mark a stunning shift in policy and messaging from Tractor Supply, which once touted its diversity and inclusion efforts. Just earlier this month, Tractor Supply President and CEO Hal Lawton maintained that the company remained “very consistent” in how it approaches its own DEI and ESG — environmental, social and governance — programs for a number of years.
“(We've) just been very consistent in our emphasis there,” Lawton said in a June 5 interview with The Associated Press, pointing to company web pages that he said reinforced and reported on those efforts. “We haven’t walked away from anything.”
Thursday's move appeared to reverse much of that — and arrives amid a wider backdrop of conservative backlash and litigation that has targeted companies across industries, as well as a wide array of diversity initiatives, including fellowships, hiring goals, anti-bias training and contract programs for minority or women-owned businesses.
Legal attacks against companies' diversity and inclusion efforts have particularly been on the rise since June of last year, when the Supreme Court ruled to end affirmative action in college admissions. Many conservative and anti-DEI activists have been seeking to set a similar precedent in the working world.
Beyond the courtroom, some companies and brands — from Bud Light to Target — have been hit with online campaigns calling for boycotts.
Meanwhile, some other corporations and law firms have quietly altered their diversity programs, a stark contrast to the very public announcement on Thursday by Tractor Supply. In its statement, the company said “heard from customers that we have disappointed them” and “taken this feedback to heart.”
“We will continue to listen to our customers and Team Members," Tractor Supply added. "Your trust and confidence in us are of the utmost importance, and we don’t take that lightly.”
A Tractor Supply spokesperson declined to provide further comment Friday.
This week's move arrives after the company faced ample pushback online from conservative activists and far-right accounts across social media, including from the prominent right-wing account known as Libs of TikTok.
It’s time to expose Tractor Supply.
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) June 6, 2024
It’s one of the most beloved brands in 🇺🇸 by conservatives but what do they REALLY stand for under CEO @hallawton’s leadership?
• LGBTQIA+ training for employees
• Funding pride/drag events
• They have a DEI Council
• Funding sex changes… pic.twitter.com/F4tvNmNZ9f
The backlash against Tractor Supply appeared to bubble up earlier this month. In a June 6 post on social media platform X, conservative political commentator and filmmaker Robby Starbuck told his followers to “start buying what you can from other places until Tractor Supply makes REAL changes and shows that they respect the majority of their customers enough to not spend the money we give them on causes we’re deeply opposed to.”
Starbuck and other conservative social media users continued to criticize Tractor Supply in the following weeks — and celebrated Thursday's news from the company.
In contrast, others have expressed disappointment with Tractor Supply's announcement — with some arguing that the company is giving in to hate and harming its customers by abandoning crucial principles. Many users on social media are also vowing to now shop elsewhere.
Eric Bloem, vice president of programs and corporate advocacy at the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement that Tractor Supply is “turning its back on their own neighbors with this shortsighted decision.” The organization had worked with Tractor Supply to create inclusive policies and practices for years, he added.
“LGBTQ+ people live in every zip code in this country, including rural communities. We are shoppers, farmers, veterans and agriculture students,” Bloem said. "Caving to far right extremists is only going to hurt the same folks that these businesses rely on.”
From Nike to T-Swift: A look at what conservatives have boycotted in the name of politics
Taylor Swift
![ENTER-MUS-AMAS-SWIFT-LA](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=150%2C133 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=200%2C177 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=225%2C199 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=300%2C266 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=400%2C354 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=540%2C479 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=640%2C567 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=750%2C665 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=990%2C877 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C917 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C1063 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C1181 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1308 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/1e/11e72d88-0bd6-5c16-b24f-83a21ef23eb7/667f1bba3b141.image.jpg?resize=1529%2C1355 2008w)
Taylor Swift performs on Dec. 10, 2017 in London. Swift will open the 2018 AMerican Music Awards. (Doug Peters/EMPICS Entertainment/Abaca Press/TNS)
Taylor Swift’s conservative fans just can’t shake this one off.
After years of silence on the political front, the pop superstar endorsed a Democrat in the Tennessee Senate race Sunday, leaving her Republican fan base seeing “Red” — and steadfastly declaring they are never ever getting back together.
“Very simple — if you buy Taylor Swift music, merchandise & concert tickets you will be sending money to a progressive who is working to destroy your country. #BoycottTaylorSwift,” user @ETTalkShow wrote on Twitter.
Added another Twitter user: “Hey Taylor Swift – not going to buy another song by you. You do not represent country values. You have sold out to the liberal Hollywood crowd. Enjoy their company.”
Others called for a boycott of the American Music Awards, where Swift performed shortly after her endorsement, and urged fans to send her merchandise and CDs up in flames.
Harley Davidson
![APTOPIX Earns Harley Davidson](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=150%2C98 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=200%2C131 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=225%2C148 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=300%2C197 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=400%2C263 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=540%2C355 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=640%2C420 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=750%2C492 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=990%2C650 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C680 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C788 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C875 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C969 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/f/99/f99e0aaf-6f02-53b0-8a51-87d6ffc1e890/667f1bc24be33.image.jpg?resize=1776%2C1166 2008w)
Motorcycles are reflected in a gas tank at a Harley Davidson dealer Tuesday, July 20, 2010, in New Berlin, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Harley Davidson found itself on the bad side of the GOP in August, when President Trump encouraged customers to boycott the company if it moved some of its motorcycle production overseas.
“Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great!” Trump wrote. “Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! U.S. will soon have a level playing field, or better.”
Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great! Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! U.S. will soon have a level playing field, or better.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2018
Plenty of customers jumped on social media to join in on the boycott, calling the company a “sell-out” and unpatriotic.
“I would boycott them for leaving the USA. They are greedy traitors to their own countrymen,” one user wrote.
The NFL
![Cowboys 49ers Football](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=150%2C105 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=200%2C140 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=225%2C158 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=300%2C210 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=400%2C280 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=540%2C379 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=640%2C449 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=750%2C526 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=990%2C694 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C726 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C841 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C934 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1035 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/13/b134b378-fb70-57b9-904f-a6ac657fc0bc/667f1bccad226.image.jpg?resize=1719%2C1205 2008w)
San Francisco 49ers outside linebacker Eli Harold, left, quarterback Colin Kaepernick, center, and safety Eric Reid kneel during the national anthem before an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 2, 2016. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Perhaps the most high-profile boycott was that of the NFL, which erupted last fall amid racial injustice protests that took place during the playing of the national anthem.
After players across the entire organization started taking a knee during the anthem in peaceful protest, angry fans across the country turned their backs on their beloved sport in the name of patriotism.
“I realize that we live in a free country where people have the freedom to not participate in the national anthem. I also have the freedom to not spend another minute or dollar on your product,” a former fan wrote in a letter to the Steelers that was published in Sports Illustrated. “To not participate in the national anthem is an insult to every serviceman who has served or has passed away defending this country.”
President Trump encouraged the boycott on Twitter, writing in September 2017 that teams needed to “fire or suspend” players who kneeled or risk boycotting fans.
“If NFL fans refuse to go to games until players stop disrespecting our country, you will see change take place fast,” he wrote.
If NFL fans refuse to go to games until players stop disrespecting our Flag & Country, you will see change take place fast. Fire or suspend!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 24, 2017
Keurigs
![Green Mountain Coffee](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=150%2C101 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=200%2C134 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=225%2C151 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=300%2C202 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=400%2C269 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=540%2C363 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=640%2C430 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=750%2C504 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=990%2C665 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C696 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C806 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C896 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C992 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/58/458d0240-f2c5-56d2-adf4-3bb18a47815d/5bd0a19e20491.image.jpg?resize=1756%2C1180 2008w)
Keurig's Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Vue individual coffee roasting system, which can also prepare frothy hot beverages and iced drinks, is displayed during a news conference in New York, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
Fans of Fox News’ Sean Hannity swapped their daily caffeine intake for rage after the coffeemaker company pulled its ads from the host’s show over his defense of accused sexual predator and former Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore.
Shortly after Keurig pulled the plug on ads, both #BoycottKeurg and #IStandWithHannity were trending on Twitter, with users declaring they were done forever with the machines — and some going so far as to film themselves destroying Keurigs.
Nike
![Kaepernick Nike](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=150%2C104 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=200%2C139 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=225%2C156 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=300%2C209 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=400%2C278 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=540%2C375 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=640%2C445 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=750%2C521 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=990%2C688 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C720 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C834 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C927 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1026 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/55/455c16bd-25d9-5091-b9d0-142ea25a0d49/667f1bddb178f.image.jpg?resize=1726%2C1200 2008w)
A large billboard stands on top of a Nike store showing former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick at Union Square, Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2018, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)
The sportwear company caused a stir last month when it announced Colin Kaepernick as one of the faces of the “Just Do It” 30th anniversary campaign.
Kaepernick, who kicked off the kneeling protests and lost his job in the NFL in the process, was certainly a sore subject for many, and soon, there were calls for a Nike boycott.
People across the country filmed themselves setting their Nike shoes on fire all in the name of the flag.
“First the NFL forces me to choose between my favorite sport and my country. I chose country. Then Nike forces me to choose between my favorite shoes and my country. Since when did the American flag and the national anthem become offensive,” user @sclancy79 wrote in a tweet that got more than 66,000 likes.
John Rich of the country duo Big & Rich also went viral with a tweet saying that his sound man cut up his pair of white Nike tube socks in protest.
A Rhode Island town council even passed a resolution asking its department not to purchase Nike products, while state police in Mississippi said they’d stop buying Nike gear.
Still, despite the backlash, Nike’s online sales reportedly grew 31 percent over the Labor Day holiday weekend, compared to 2017.
Levi's
![MITSOBATA](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=150%2C112 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=200%2C149 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=225%2C168 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=300%2C224 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=400%2C298 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=540%2C403 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=640%2C477 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=750%2C559 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=990%2C738 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C772 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C895 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C994 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1101 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/38/b385ee5f-19e2-51f0-8178-52340e992452/667f1be5951d0.image.jpg?resize=1667%2C1243 2008w)
Store employee Brett Mitsobata stocks a Levi's jeans display at a downtown Toronto department store Monday, Feb. 22, 1999. (AP Photo/CP Kevin Frayer)
The jean company’s president penned an open letter announcing a partnership with a non-profit dedicated to gun control – and in the process, sparked a boycott of its pants.
“We simply cannot stand by silently when it comes to the issues that threaten the very fabric of the communities where we live and work. While taking a stand can be unpopular with some, doing nothing is no longer an option,” CEO Chip Bergh wrote.
Not all agreed.
“After more than 65 years as customers our entire family is boycotting this company,” Twitter user @inspbuild wrote. “Traitors to the second amendment will not get a dime from this veteran and his family! #BoycottLevis.”
Added another, “I now feel embarrassed even to donate my Nike and Levis stuff to charity. Currently shopping for new shoes and wardrobe. Thank goodness for freedom of choice. #BoycottNike #BoycottLevis.”
Willie Nelson
![Willie Nelson in Concert - Austin, TX](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/68/668616d9-4bbf-58ac-8d89-8b954dc87d95/5bd0a1a2ac746.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
From left, artist Willie Nelson and Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-TX) wave to the crowd during the "Turn Out for Texas" concert and rally at Auditorium Shores on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2018 in Austin, Texas. O'Rourke is running against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) for his senate seat. (Photo by Laura Roberts/Invision/AP Images)
Nelson had his name added to the list last month, when he announced he’d headline a rally for Beto O’Rourke, a Democrat challenging Ted Cruz in the Senate race.
The singer revealed the plan in a Facebook post, which was quickly inundated with comments from angry fans.
“I haven’t been this disappointed since the day I used my Dixie Chicks CDs for target practice,” Mark D. Wyatt wrote. “Why couldn’t you just stay out of politics? As a lifelong fan that still has my original ‘Highwayman’ album, I am done.”
“Well, you just broke my heart Willie,” Dixie Belluchi-Watters wrote. “40 some years as a fan, now it’s over. Have a great life, I won’t be following it any longer.”
T.I.
![US TI Video Melania Trump](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/a2/7a2978c7-4e54-5be4-bf46-921b2f818a44/667f1bf739c6c.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
FILE - In this Sept. 14, 2018, file photo shows rapper Clifford Harris Jr., better known as T.I., on the porch of his grandparents' home where he grew up in Atlanta. A Melania Trump spokeswoman is asking people to boycott Atlanta rapper T.I. because of his promotional album video that shows a woman resembling the first lady stripping in the oval office. (AP Photo/John Amis, File)
A Melania Trump spokeswoman is asking people to boycott Atlanta rapper T.I. because of his promotional album video that shows a woman resembling the first lady stripping in the oval office.
WXIA-TV reports that Trump's communications director, Stephanie Grisham, tweeted Saturday asking how the video was acceptable.
T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, tweeted Friday "Dear 45, I ain't Kanye" before sharing the video. The woman is wearing a jacket that reads "I REALLY DON'T CARE, DO U?" Trump wore a jacket with that wording on her way to visit migrant children in Texas. She said recently in an interview with ABC News that she wore the jacket to troll reporters.
Dear 45,I ain’t Kanye. 😳 pic.twitter.com/BCS8nkbn1M
— T.I. (@Tip) October 13, 2018
Those tweets follow T.I. posting on Instagram that he was done working with rapper Kanye West, who is a President Donald Trump supporter.
—The Associated Press, information from: WXIA-TV, 11alive.com