Partisan boycotts are all the rage in our culture that cares little for meaningful conversation and constructive dialog. There comes a time when a company’s practices warrant a response via the denial of our hard earned money. But it appears, In-N-Out, a beloved southwestern burger chain committed the heinous offense of partisan donations. The original call for the boycott came from Eric Bauman, chair of the Democratic Party in California, as reported by San Francisco Chronicle.
Et tu In-N-Out? Tens of thousands of dollars donated to the California Republican Party… it’s time to #BoycottInNOut – let Trump and his cronies support these creeps… perhaps animal style!https://t.co/9zkdFaG5CJ
— EricBauman – The UnCommon Sense Democrat (@EricBauman) August 30, 2018
Eric Bauman’s tweet received immediate backfire and was ratioed quickly. The call to boycott In-N-Out was in response of a recent donation of $25000 to the California GOP. Large companies notoriously give to candidates and causes along both sides, so Bauman’s actions were viewed as bullying.
Reactions
https://twitter.com/Mellecon/status/1035277250629984256
In-n-out pays above minimum wage, lets you work your way up to making professional level money and has great benefits. But y’all want to #BoycottInNOut because they donated money polically?
Y’all gotta be a little tougher.
— George Wrighster III (@georgewrighster) August 30, 2018
Please boycott In-N-Out so I don't have to wait half an hour in the drive thru. However, I feel this boycott won't change anything, just like the Chick-Fil-A boycott. Just a bunch of close-minded people who don't accept people with a difference of opinions. #BoycottInNOut
— Stone (@Stoneski09) August 30, 2018
Results
As the reactions indicate, the #BoycottInNOut movement is relatively similar to the Boycott of Chick-Fil-A that failed years ago. People were shocked that a Christian company supported God’s definition of marriage. At the end of the day, Chick-Fil-A retained customers for having not bent under the pressures of the world. In both situations, the boycotts were snuffed away miserably. The offense just wasn’t strong enough for people to stop loving the product. In contrast, the NFL finds itself in the reverse situation where the love of the product wasn’t enough to overcome the offense, as ratings and last season’s woes for the Baltimore Ravens would prove. Likewise, In-N-Out will likely follow suit, though under far less stress. In the end, In-N-Out will succeed because of the company’s prior commitment to excellence. This commitment has resonated with their fans who have come to scoff calls of protests. The best businesses commit to a form of excellence that calls their stakeholders to their defense so easily and so unnecessarily. But when it comes to crushing a potential corporate scandal, overkill is not underrated.
Final Thoughts
As for In-N-Out, it was a great to hear upon taking upon this topic that the company is overly Christian, like a Chick-Fil-A for burgers. It lends lends reason to why the commitment to excellence is there. Being a east coaster, I do not have the privilege of visiting their establishment, but an establishment that normalizes the Bible in our everyday lives, is worth visiting. Keep up the good work!
Raymond Fava is the Founder of Startup Christ and the founder of EcoEats, Inc. EcoEats crafts exotic jerkies using unique flavors. To see their selection, click here.
