Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) took firm action against the parent company of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream after the company announced that they would no longer do business in what they referred to as “Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
DeSantis asked the State Board Administration to place both Ben & Jerry’s and its parent company, Unilever, on the “Continued Examination Companies that Boycott Israel List.”
“As you know, Florida has long had a strong relationship with the State of Israel,” said DeSantis in the letter to the office.
“As a matter of law and principle, the State of Florida does not tolerate discrimination against the State of Israel or the Israeli people, including boycotts and divestments targeting Israel,” he added.
A spokesperson for DeSantis told Fox Business that being on the list meant the state could not buy stock in companies linked to Unilever, nor could they contract with the companies.
The Biden administration also rejected the move by the ice cream company and instead issued a statement in support of Israel.
“We firmly reject the BDS movement, which unfairly singles out Israel,” said State Department spokesman Ned Price.
“While the Biden-Harris administration will fully and always respect the First Amendment rights of our citizens, of the American people,” he added, “the United States will be a strong partner in fighting efforts around the world that potentially seek to delegitimize Israel and will work tirelessly, to support Israel’s further integration into the international community.”
While Ben & Jerry’s decision was praised by many on the left, the official Twitter account of a Palestinian organization supporting Israeli divestment called on the company to go further and end sales of ice cream in all of Israel.
Here’s more about the ice cream boycott:
Ben & Jerry’s to end ice-cream sales in occupied Palestinian territories
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