Why It Matters for Brands to Speak Up and Take a Stand

Unless you live under a rock (no judgment!), you’ve seen the recent hubbub over brands taking a stand on social issues, like hate speech, and also likely considered the brands that quietly do nothing.

Should brands get involved in social issues? Are brands, in fact, influencers? Is a brand a “person”? Does a brand have a position, and should it?

Yes to all of the above. Here’s why and, more critically, why it matters. 

1. Consumers are watching and listening.

No longer are passive quietude and acceptance even marginally OK. Now more than ever, consumers want their purchase power to count, and they care about spending with brands aligned with their own personal values. So from a purely mercenary standpoint, recognize that doing nothing could negatively impact your bottom line.

I’d like to note that I only put this first point above as a cursory nod to business ramifications for those who needed that and for whom the rest will be TLDR. Assuming that’s not you, keep going.

2. How we show up for people is how we’re remembered. 

It’s the right thing. How hard is it to do good in the world and make space for others to do it, also? If we have learned nothing else from history, it has to be that sitting around thinking social issues are someone else’s problem leads to catastrophe, beyond even the most fevered human imaginings.

Do what’s right for other human beings. It is always the right choice long term. Hate speech may or may not affect you personally but likely affects someone you know, who may be struggling. Support may look like severing partnerships or even simply articulating, “Hey, this is not OK,”  and standing behind that.

3. Silence is complicity.

Psychological research underscores lack of dissent is perceived as tacit agreement and social acceptance. We’re raised in myriad cultures not to make waves but go with the flow and slide through life as non-confrontationally as possible. Microaggressions lead to bigger things. We’ve seen how A-list celebrities have gone on TV or social media and normalized antisemitism — and how some have made it fodder for comedy.

The Rolling Stone Culture Council is an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives. Do I qualify?

There is no group of marginalized people whose collective trauma makes for acceptable mainstream comedy. Read that again. We need to stick together. Respect for equality means we recognize multiple groups of people have suffered and continue to — not that one group’s pain is OK and another’s “funny.”

4. Consumers are people.

Generally, we relate to brands as people. Brands become “friends” or not, depending on what they do when the wind blows. Patagonia, for instance, is a brand that’s been unafraid to be who it is and assumes anyone not OK with it is simply not its customer. Has it hurt Patagonia financially? No.

Will I continue purchasing goods and services from brands with openly antisemitic ambassadors? Also no. There is a whole world out there from which to purchase. No brand should be so cocksure as to presume its products are irreplaceable. Consumers will just get whatever elsewhere. 

5. Passivity is not an option.

We live in a time where hesitation to get involved is a proverbial ship that’s sailed. Refusing to stand for anything means you stand for nothing. There’s the consumer standpoint on this and there’s also the effect on your staff. Inclusivity means considering how people in your company may be experiencing life at the moment and being mindful of the turmoil current events may be causing.

Antisemitism is rarely if at all even included in corporate ERG. While Jewish people are not seen as a minority, despite being less than one percent of the total global population, we assuredly are a minority. We have a complex and horrific history, yet even the most ardent civil rights supporters predominantly fall silent when it comes to including us in their outreach. That is a topic for a whole other article (or dissertation), but for this one: be aware and be present. 

Be open to what your staff may be experiencing. Make space for people’s experience, even (and especially) if it’s troubling. Silence is deafening. Be the leader who takes a stand — and if there’s a statement that needs to be made or action taken, do so. Failing to do so emboldens danger. There is enough emotional labor already on Jewish communities — allies are needed. Extend others the same courtesy you give yourself and others.

I am a proud Jewish woman, and I am a proudly Jewish woman. I use my voice when I see anyone, from any group, being marginalized. That includes my fellow Jews, and that includes me. My advocacy is not unilateral. Yet I am but one person. It makes my heart sing when I see the power and strength of a global brand unafraid to do the same: and any brand that recognizes its colossal responsibility. 

A brand is a person. People (and hence brands) have influence over people. People are what make the world turn. It’s an integral and commingled relationship, which cannot and should not be separated. Have the integrity to pursue social good.

Life is too short for any of us, and all of us, to be passive. Speak up, take a stand. Marketers don’t spend so much time creating a brand for it to be timid.