In light of recent political disruptions around the world, many companies have taken it upon themselves to denounce or support countries involved in conflict. I’m specifically referring to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war that is a part of the larger Israel-Palestinian conflict. As this bitter war takes more lives, companies keep putting out statements that aren’t well-informed, have nothing to do with their brand and only exist to appease their fans. 

For instance, the NFL recently released a statement denouncing the actions of Hamas and expressing support for Israel. Not only was this post incredibly dismissive of the loss of Palestinian life, but also has absolutely nothing to do with the NFL. The NFL is supposed to be about football; they have no need to choose a side in any conflict, especially when both sides have had massive casualties. If they are going to comment on the conflict, it should be with empathy for both sides, not ignorance. 

Furthermore, organizations often comment on political/social issues when they have a political agenda to push. Recently, organizations like Starbucks, Google and McDonald’s have been advocating for the protection of Israeli lives and have been providing them relief. This sounds like a fair thing to do, but companies are always looking out for themselves and their money. For example, Starbucks is supporting Israel because the current CEO and chairman is a known Zionist who is known to have used Starbucks to invest in Israeli businesses. So if the Israel-Hamas war turns against Israel, Starbucks will lose lots of money. This alludes to how most of the advocacy companies do are to help themselves, not because they actually care about the people suffering. 

In addition, companies might take stances on social issues to appease the majority but then disregard their stance behind closed doors. Going back to the NFL, they said they supported the Black Lives Matter movement and were committed to ensuring racial equality within the organization, but the NFL still hasn’t changed its racist hiring policies regarding coaches. In a 2022 study conducted by Statista, 56% of NFL players are Black but only 11% of NFL coaches are Black. This alludes to the fact that there are lots of Black players within the NFL, but they are rarely given leadership positions, showing how racial hiring inequality is very present within the NFL but often goes unaddressed. This is exemplary of a corporation supporting a cause to appeal to the general public, but not truly committing to the objective they claimed to support. 

All of these reasons are why corporations should refrain from commenting on issues that don’t pertain to them. Not only are the stances rarely well-researched, but they show ignorance, push political agendas for self-serving reasons and are performative in nature. Instead of taking firm stances, should they choose to weigh in, corporations should approach these conflicts with empathy for all sides, and provide statements that unify people, not divide them.  

The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Mahitha Konjeti at [email protected].