Aussies planning to vote “No” in the upcoming Voice to parliament referendum have attempted to spark a nationwide boycott of companies supportive of the constitutional amendment.
Activists are calling upon Australians to give pro-Voice companies like Woolworths, Commbank and Qantas the “Bud Light Treatment”, referencing the recent stock plunge of the popular US beer company after it openly supported the LGBT movement in an advertising campaign this year.
Some of the companies have released statements online confirming their “commitment to Reconciliation”.
One tweet listing the companies gained serious attention online, with thousands liking and commenting their opinions on the matter.
Some expressed concern that major corporations were openly backing political movements, claiming it placed pressure on their thousands of workers to vote in the interests of their employer.
But others were sceptical the approach would work.
“To boycott every woke company you would have to live off grid, hunt and grow your own food and drink rainwater,” one person commented.
Amid the increasingly tense political climate, many companies are choosing to remain impartial on the Voice to parliament.
Menzies Research Centre‘s Nick Cater said companies are “recognising that the opinion is divided” leading up to the vote, which will most likely be held between October and December.
“There’s no clear moral right or wrong on this issue, it’s up for people to decide,” he told Sky News.
The push to pressure pro-Voice companies came after vitamin giant Blackmores found itself at the centre of a similar social media firestorm in February.
Twitter users called for a nationwide boycott over the political beliefs of one of the company’s biggest backers.
Major shareholder Marcus Blackmore, whose father started the company, publicly declared he would be voting “no” in the upcoming referendum on the Indigenous Voice to parliament.
However, Blackmores said Mr Blackmore’s views don’t represent those held by the company, adding that he hasn’t worked at the business since 2020.
The hashtag “BoycottBlackmores” trended for several days on Twitter following Mr Blackmore’s comments, as some pledged to avoid the company’s products while others insisted the 78-year-old’s views didn’t matter.
Mr Blackmore last week said he would support Indigenous senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, who is calling for Australians to vote no in the referendum in a campaign funded by conservative group Advance.
“If Jacinta tells me I should vote no, I am voting no. She obviously knows a lot more about the Aboriginal issues than I do,” he told Nine newspapers at the time.
“I have not been convinced by the Prime Minister or anybody else that I should vote yes. It’s no different to business. If you’re no good at sales, employ a salesman.”
The attempted boycott is remincient of the Bud Light saga which saw a popular American brand attacked after it partnered with a transgender influencer.