Madelyn Hoffman, Green Party of New Jersey’s candidate for Governor
Calls on Governor Murphy to “Let Ben and Jerry’s decide how and where to sell its products. I support their act of conscience in not wanting
to contribute to the on-going brutal occupation of Palestine.”
For more information contact:
Dustin Young, campaign manager, (215) 866-7343
Dustin Young, campaign manager, (215) 866-7343
Madelyn Hoffman, (973)876-1023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
9/21/2021
When Selling Ice Cream Becomes Political —
The Politics of Ice Cream
The state of New Jersey announced last week that it was going to divest $182 million in pension fund money from the multinational corporation Unilever, whose corporate headquarters are in Englewood Cliffs. They are using a bill passed in 2016 that allows for state government officials to penalize private companies whose business decisions they deem are paramount to participation in a boycott.
Unilever is the parent company of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream — based in Vermont and immensely popular throughout the U.S. and beyond. In July, Ben and Jerry’s announced that it was no longer going to sell its ice cream in the occupied territories of Palestine and its illegal settlements. Ben and Jerry’s decided that it no longer wanted to help support the actions of the Israeli government in violating Palestinians’ human rights.
Madelyn Hoffman, the Green Party of New Jersey’s candidate for Governor opposed that bill when it first was publicized. “I remember standing on a busy road in Secaucus on an extremely hot day, along with at least 40 others –protesting this bill that eventually passed. We opposed it because it was unconstitutional, giving the state government power over boardroom decisions. It was also effectively criminalizing one of the most effective nonviolent ways of protesting the actions of a company or a government — remember the Montgomery Bus Boycotts? The grape boycott? The boycott of South Africa which eventually ended the practice of apartheid?“
Hoffman added, “I want to debate Governor Murphy in the upcoming event planned for September 28th at the PAC in Newark, on this and many other issues, but I did not raise the required $490,000 to qualify. I, along with 3 other independent candidates for governor, met all the other requirements to be listed on the ballot. Once again, both in the passage of the bill and the ability to debate that bill, ‘worthiness’ is determined only by how much money you have, or how much money you can make. This has to change.”
Hoffman concluded: “I URGE GOVERNOR MURPHY TO OPPOSE NEW JERSEY DIVESTING FROM UNILEVER. Let Ben and Jerry’s decide how and where to sell its products. I support their act of conscience in not wanting to contribute to the on-going brutal occupation of Palestine. I urge Governor Murphy to take a step back from the unconditional support he gives to the Israeli government and to take the NJ government out of the role of managing Israel’s economic affairs. Your business deal with Netanyahu, whom you called a ‘good man,’ is money gained off the backs of the Palestinians and constant violation of Palestinians’ human rights. We can’t continue to support this!“
