Brand suicide or savvy PR move? CEO of Hispanic food giant Goya praises Trump, inciting Twitter riots
After the CEO of Hispanic food megabrand Goya spoke at the White House, demands to “cancel” the popular brand on social media have arisen – met by equally furious pushback from the corporation’s defenders.
Goya CEO Robert Unanue praised President Donald Trump as “an incredible builder” in a speech at the White House on Thursday, calling on the audience to “pray for our country, that we will continue to prosper and to grow.”
Unanue was speaking as a nominee to the President’s Advisory Committee on Hispanic Prosperity, a new body of a dozen Hispanic businesspeople and community leaders chaired by New Mexico Lieutenant Governor John Sanchez – presumably intended to shore up Trump’s support among that demographic ahead of November’s election.
CEO of Goya Foods, Robert Unanue: "We're all truly blessed to have a leader like President @realDonaldTrump" pic.twitter.com/vqMP4C3rqb
— Team Trump (Text TRUMP to 88022) (@TeamTrump) July 9, 2020
But that wasn’t cool with Igor Volsky, director of anti-gun nonprofit Guns Down America, who advised his followers to “make your shopping decisions accordingly” after informing them the Goya CEO had stated Americans were “blessed to have a leader” like Trump.
The CEO of @GoyaFoods is at a White House event saying we're"blessed to have a leader" like Trump. Make your shopping decisions accordingly. pic.twitter.com/lLHSz4mEUV
— igorvolsky (@igorvolsky) July 9, 2020
Many users jumped on board the bandwagon, demanding Goya pay the price for aligning itself with Trump.
Goya will now be known as the seasoning that enables abusers of small children.Remember that when you're feeding your family.#Blacklivesmatterpic.twitter.com/nqNFFP7sij
— Blue $uccess🌊🍑🆘 (@AmericasRachel) July 9, 2020
Don't buy from Goya Foods anymore. The CEO of Goya Foods said at a White House event today that they were blessed to have a leader like Donald Trump. Burn it all down, and start building power from the ground up through your local cooperatives.
— #DraftJesse #VoteGreen2020 #LearnMMT 🌹 (@NoFascistLies) July 9, 2020
Calls to #boycottGoya rang out across social media.
"A leader. A builder." - @bunanueFrom one CEO to another, I'm ashamed. Switching from @GoyaFoods to LITERALLY anything else. Robert, please mind your words, specially on the front lawn of the White House. #BoycottGoya
— Francisco Alvarez (@FrancisMAlvarez) July 9, 2020
.@GoyaFoods I guess I'll be finding a new Salsa Verde & other Mexican staples! #BoycottGoyahttps://t.co/wADt4NMqAc
— Bob Weil (@liewbob) July 9, 2020
Not everyone was on the same page, of course. One user noted that Goya had donated some 200,000lb (90,718kg) of food and 20,000 face masks during the pandemic that saw millions of Americans lose their jobs and many more endure reduced hours or pay cuts, suggesting maybe canceling the brand over Unanue’s White House appearance was not the best idea – and several came out to back that point of view.
Goya Foods, America’s largest Hispanic owned food company, has donated over 200,000 pounds of food & 20,000 protective masks during the COVID crisis.Pretty sure that's a little more important to recognize & continue supporting right now than a boycott over our dislike of Trump https://t.co/hZzRHyO8KY
— Liberal, Not Lefty (@liberalnotlefty) July 9, 2020
The useful idiots of the #CancelCulture fanatics (latest example the call to boycott Goya foods) have no idea how irrational and anti-humanitarian they are. Don't engage them. Waste of time. Just help the newly redpilled to understand American history & our future. #MAGApic.twitter.com/voSiwXBozU
— Hurricane Watcher #BestYearEver #TextWOKEto88022 (@FreedomFriesInc) July 9, 2020
Others attested to strong support for Trump within the demographic in question, questioning why a “white guy named Igor” was telling the Hispanic community what to do.
If I understand this correctly, a white guy named Igor is suggesting a boycott of a Hispanic founded and owned business and food supplier because of a quote from the CEO at the White House? https://t.co/m5817nRqUm
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) July 9, 2020
Yeah, so? My Hispanic family all support our great @POTUS
— 🇺🇲 Say No To Dementia Joe🇺🇲 (@Miabella4u) July 9, 2020
And several people declared they’d start buying Goya specifically because of the “boycott,” declaring they were making a stand against “cancel culture.”
I bought a case of Goya beverages from amazon, great salesmen Igor!
— Aaron et politica ingenio 🚀🇺🇸 (@peekaso) July 9, 2020
Thank you @igorvolsky I most definitely WILL make my shopping decisions accordingly. I'm going online right now to look up recipes where I can incorporate @GoyaFoods into my dinner.
— PopArt (@PopArtNJ) July 9, 2020
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