Conservatives are smashing Keurigs to defend Sean Hannity — here are the other brands that have incurred the wrath of the right

Conservatives are calling for a boycott of Keurig after the coffee brand
Other high-profile, right-wing protests include burning NFL jerseys, writing "Trump" on Starbucks cups, and cutting up Nordstrom credit cards.
Conservative boycotts have become a common occurrence in the Trump era.

Keurig is feeling the wrath of conservatives — and it's far from the first brand to incur the anger of the right in the Trump era.

On Saturday, Keurig announced on Twitter that it would no longer advertise on Sean Hannity's show on Fox News. Hannity had faced backlash after interviewing Roy Moore — an Alabama GOP Senate candidate accused of sexual misconduct with a 14-year-old and other teens — on Friday.

With Keurig cutting advertising, many on the right called for Hannity's supporters to boycott Keurig. On Sunday, some of Hannity's supporters went as far as posting videos of themselves smashing their Keurig coffee machines.

With the political rise of President Trump, customers' convictions that brands are adopting anti-Trump or anti-conservative political stances have sparked a number of boycotts.

Often, some people on social media take these protests in absurd directions — as in the case of Keurig smashing or writing "Trump" on coffee cups. However, many boycotts also have concrete business implications, as in the case of the NFL's declining ratings.

Here's an overview of what happens when the right decides to boycott a brand.

NFL

After more than a year of NFL players sitting and kneeling during the national anthem, controversy over protests reached a tipping point when in September President Trump called for the protesting players to be suspended or fired.

Many conservatives backed Trump in his call for a boycott, some showing their support of the president — and their anger at players — by burning their teams' merchandise.

While the fans burning merchandise seem to be a vocal minority, the scandal does seem to be impacting the NFL. Ratings are down this season and, earlier this month, Papa John's said that the controversy had led the company to consider ending its sponsorship deal with the league.

Amazon

Amazon has faced boycott threats from both the right and left over the past year.

In February, Amazon announced it would support Washington State in a federal lawsuit challenging President Trump's executive order barring people from seven majority-Muslim countries from entering the US.

Soon after, angry customers began voicing their anger over Amazon's "anti-Trump agenda" on social media and promising to boycott the ecommerce giant. In June, Trump tweeted that the "Amazon Washington Post" is "FAKE NEWS."

Starbucks

In February, some Starbucks customers threatened to boycott the coffee giant after its CEO took a stand against President Donald Trump's executive order barring immigrants from seven majority-Muslim countries from entering the US.

This wasn't the first time people on the right pulled Starbucks into a protest.

In late 2016, alt-right Twitter user Baked Alaska challenged his 123,000 followers to go to Starbucks and tell the employees that their names are Trump. According to Baked Alaska, the purpose of asking baristas to write "Trump" on cups is to "trigger SJW" employees (SJW is an abbreviation for social justice warrior, a derogatory term for feminists and progressives).

And, in late 2015, Donald Trump encouraged boycotting the chain while campaigning.

"Did you read about Starbucks? No more Merry Christmas on Starbucks," Trump told a Springfield, Illinois rally. "Maybe we should boycott Starbucks. I don't know. Seriously, I don't care."

Nordstrom

In February, Nordstrom cut ties with Ivanka Trump's brand, citing disappointing sales. The move came after months of online efforts from the anti-Trump #GrabYourWallet movement, which has encouraged shoppers to boycott any retailer that does business with the Trump family.

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway told Americans to "go buy Ivanka's stuff" in a Fox News interview, and some Trump supporters promised that they would boycott Nordstrom in the future.

In one viral video, a group of women storm into a Nordstrom to cancel their accounts, promising to shop at Dillard's instead.

Kellogg

Many on the right organized a boycott against Kellogg after the cereal brand announced in November 2016 that it would no longer advertise on Breitbart in an effort to "ensure our ads do not appear on sites that aren't aligned with our values as a company."

Breitbart organized an extensive boycott effort called #DumpKellogg.

The CEO denied that the boycott had any impact on sales.

Target

Target triggered a nationwide boycott in April 2016 with a blog post that publicized a policy that said transgender customers were welcome to use the bathroom or fitting room that matched their gender identity.

The boycott cost the company millions in lost sales and added expenses. After the blog post, shopper traffic and same-store sales started sliding for the first time in years, and the company was forced to spend $20 million installing single-occupancy bathrooms in all its stores to give critics of the policy more privacy.

Beyoncé

Beyoncé's Super Bowl halftime performance of her new song "Formation" in 2016 was met with acclaim by her fans. But, many called for a boycott of the singer's music because of the harsh message the song's video sends to the police on the topics of racism and police brutality.

The singer later poked fun at the controversy, selling #BoycottBeyoncé t-shirts on her tour.

Conservatives are smashing Keurigs to defend Sean Hannity — here are the other brands that have incurred the wrath of the right

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