McDonald's boycott kicks off in California, across US. Here's why the restaurant is targeted
Led by John Schwarz, The People's Union began organizing boycotts of specific companies in late February. Although their blackouts started at a similar time as other boycotts targeting companies that rolled back diversity, equity and inclusion programs, Schwarz told The Arizona Republic that the actions of The People's Union USA are influenced, but not caused by, companies' DEI stances.
"The mission of The People's Union USA is to hold corporations and corrupt systems accountable, not with violence or empty promises, but with the one thing that actually affects them, the money we spend," Schwarz said via email.
In a June 19 Instagram post, Schwarz laid out a series of reasons for the boycott.
"They practice performative DEI with no meaningful change. They prioritize profit over people, community, and truth," the list stated. "They exploit tax loopholes and do not pay their fair share."
McDonald's is one of over 30 companies that have rolled back DEI policies after the Supreme Court's ruling striking down affirmative action. The company dropped "aspirational representation goals," stopped external diversity surveys and changed the name of its diversity team to "Global Inclusion Team," according to a Jan. 6 memo.
In 2022, McDonald's paid $1.3 billion to settle a tax dispute in France that alleged the company had illegally diverted income to other countries.
The source of the boycotts: These 30 companies rolled back DEI policies, from Amazon to Victoria's Secret
Schwarz shared a flyer on social media that lays out a series of upcoming boycotts:
July 4: Economic blackout
July 1-31: Boycott of Starbucks, Amazon and Home Depot
August 1 -31: Boycott of Walmart, McDonald's and Lowe's
Reach the reporter at reia.li@gannett.com. Follow @reia_reports on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: McDonald's boycott 2025: Here's why people are boycotting, what's next
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