Superwake American ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s lashed out on July 4 because of a political tweet

Ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s sparked outrage with a July 4 tweet calling for the United States to return “stolen native lands,” starting with returning Mount Rushmore to the Lakota Sioux tribe.

The company, which was founded by Bernie Sanders allies Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenwood but has since been sold to British multinational Unilever, tweeted the message to its 494,000 followers.

“On July 4th, it is high time we recognize the US’s existence on stolen Indigenous land and commit to returning it,” the company’s official account wrote before suggesting that Mount Rushmore should be returned to its original owners .

The tweet sparked immediate outrage on social media, with many disgusted shoppers using the hashtag #boycottbenandjerrys to label the post as anti-American sentiment on a day meant to celebrate the United States.

One commenter compared the statement to Bud Light’s partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney — which resulted in the beer giant losing more than $20 million in sales.

The ice cream brand, which has long courted a progressive public, called on the United States to return ‘stolen Indigenous land’

“Long ago before the Bud Light treatment. You hate the country, fine. We do not buy your product. Everthing okay.’

Another commenter called for “#boycottbenandjerrys for being hateful and divisive to Americans on July 4th.”

Joseph Massey called them hypocrites for all the cows who had to suffer to make the company’s ice cream.

“First you must apologize to the millions of cows you milked without permission,” he wrote. “Your product is colonialist misogyny in the form of an overpriced dessert. Stop feeding the human-cow trauma.”

Kevin Dalton continued the hypocrisy, noting that technically Ben & Jerry’s own factories were on stolen land.

“I look forward to the virtue of Ben & Jerry’s returning their factory land to the Abenaki and Mohican Native Americans who have lived in Vermont for 10,000 years.”

Eli Klein agreed, “A commitment to give America away sounds a bit much.”

“This is absolutely stupid and indulgent nonsense,” added Libby Emmons.

Ben & Jerry’s has been an advocate of far-left causes throughout its history and has partnered with various social justice movements.

The tweet then linked to a post on the company’s website explaining why America should “start with Mount Rushmore” and how they hope to support a movement that would dismantle “white supremacy and systems of oppression.”

‘Ah, the Fourth of July. Who doesn’t like a good parade, a tasty barbecue and a rousing fireworks display? The only problem with all that, though, is that it can distract from an essential truth about the birth of this nation: the US was founded on stolen indigenous lands,” they wrote.

They said the Lakota Sioux Tribe referred to Mount Rushmore as Tunkasila Sakpe and that the tribe considers the land sacred.

Ben & Jerry’s also cites treaties that allowed the tribes to keep Mount Rushmore from the 1920s and a Supreme Court decision that ruled the country was effectively stolen from the Lakota tribe after they staged a sit-in in 1970 .

The court ruled that the Lakota Sioux owed $105 million, but the tribes refused payment and demanded that their land be returned.

The ice cream giant then announced its support for the Country back movementwhich is said to be ‘about the restoration of the rights and freedoms of indigenous peoples’.

“It’s about dismantling white supremacy and systems of oppression and enabling indigenous peoples to rule the land their communities have called home for thousands of years.”

The company said the Lakota Sioux Tribe referred to Mount Rushmore as Tunkasila Sakpe and the tribe considers the land sacred

Ben & Jerry’s also cites treaties that allowed the tribes to keep Mount Rushmore and a Supreme Court decision that ruled that the land was in fact stolen from the Lakota tribe after they staged a sit-in in 1970.

Cohen and Greenwood had long been supporters of Democratic Socialist Senator Sanders — who represents their home state of Vermont in the state senate — and created multiple flavors to support his campaign after selling the company in 2000.

Ben and Jerry’s has continued to push its wake agenda under CEO Dave Stever and its current owners Unilever, collaborating with the likes of Stephen Colbert, Colin Kaepernick, Megan Rapinoe and “Squad” Congresswoman Cori Bush.

In September 2021, they debuted a flavor to support a $10 billion bill from Rep. Bush that would replace police officers with social workers and other first responders in mental health and substance abuse incidents.

The cold brew-flavored ice cream, complete with marshmallow swirls and fudge brownies, was developed in partnership with New York black coffee and tea company Blk & Bold and Greyston Bakery, known for its brownies.

“The flavor supports the vision of the world where every community is safe and everyone, including black and brown people, can thrive,” said Jabari Pall, the company’s chief activism officer.

Ben & Jerry’s also partnered with the Movement for Black Lives for the new flavor.

In 2020, the company teamed up with former NFL star Colin Kaepernick for a low-fat frozen yogurt called Change the Whirled. Proceeds went to his social justice organization Know Your Rights Camp.

The popular Chubby Hubby flavor was renamed “Hubby Hubby” in 2009 in support of gay marriage legalization in Vermont.

In 2021, Ben & Jerry’s announced it would cease sales in regions such as the West Bank because “it is against our values ​​for Ben & Jerry’s ice cream to be sold in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT).”

In September 2021, they debuted a flavor to support a $10 billion bill from Rep. Bush that would replace police officers with social workers and other first responders in mental health and substance abuse incidents

The company, which was founded by longtime Bernie Sanders allies Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenwood but has since been sold to British multinational Unilever and current CEO Dave Stever, posted the tweet early Tuesday morning.

Politically motivated: Ben & Jerry’s launched a limited edition ice cream flavor titled Pecan Resist ahead of the midterm elections next week

Trend: The company previously launched other limited edition ice cream flavors, including Hubby Hubby to celebrate same-sex marriage and Empower Mint to promote voter rights

Ben & Jerry’s launched a flavor called Justice ReMix’d as part of a campaign to overhaul the country’s prison system

The company had also announced in the statement that it would not renew its licensing agreement with the Israeli company that produces and distributes the ice cream in Israel.

It was finally put back on shelves in 2022 after the company sold territorial rights to a local franchise.

In 2019, they debuted a new flavor called Justice ReMix’d as part of a prison reform campaign.

The limited edition blend is a mix of cinnamon and chocolate ice cream, cinnamon roll dough and spicy fudge brownies.

The company partnered with the Advancement Project on the campaign to “transform the system to bring justice to all, not just a few.”

In 2018, the company claimed it had taken a stand against the Trump administration by rebranding one of its flavors as Pecan Resist.

The company and its founders unveiled the limited batch of ice cream Tuesday in Washington, D.C. ahead of the midterm elections, revealing that the move was fueled by what the company viewed as a “regressive agenda” by then-President Donald Trump.