Everyone’s favorite ice cream brand Ben & Jerry’s released a statement expressing its support for the Black Lives Matter movement last week. Now a group of police officers are calling for a boycott of the ice cream.

Last Thursday, Ben & Jerry’s wrote in a statement:

Systemic and institutionalized racism are the defining civil rights and social justice issues of our time. We’ve come to understand that to be silent about the violence and threats to the lives and well-being of Black people is to be complicit in that violence and those threats.

Most social media users greeted the news with joy.

Why Ben and Jerrys woke af

⚡️ “Ben and Jerry’s release statement in support of Black Lives Matter”https://t.co/N75HRmAv4B

— Chocolate Metaphor (@_MikePearson) October 7, 2016

But the police organization Blue Lives Matter, which was created after the killings of two NYPD officers in Brooklyn in December of 2014, released a statement on Monday urging “all Americans” to boycott the ice cream brand. It said:

Ben & Jerry’s just recently announced their support for Black Lives Matter along with a misinformation campaign accusing law enforcement of widespread systemic and institutionalized racism. Many companies have offered misguided statements of support for Black Lives Matter in the past, with the false belief that they are expressing support for civil rights.

The event gave birth to the hashtag #BenAndJerrysNewFlavor and a bunch of suggestions for new flavors in honor of the company’s statement.

He Was Unarmed Dough #BenAndJerrysNewFlavor

— NUFF$AID (@nuffsaidNY) October 7, 2016

Fudge The Police #BenAndJerrysNewFlavor

— W.E.B. Dem Boyz (@Kevunn) October 7, 2016

#BenAndJerrysNewFlavor New Cone, Who Dis?

— Taco Bout It (@Anthoneezuss) October 7, 2016

Blue Lives Matter claims in the statement that Ben & Jerry’s endorsement of Black Lives Matter is anti-police and dangerous, because it inspires people to kill police officers by spreading false and misleading information about the police being racist. It said that BLM is not a civil rights group, but a political one, fighting for its own goals such as a disruption of the Western nuclear family structure and tax-paid damages for harms inflicted on black people. They wrote:

By not only attacking law enforcement, but openly supporting Black Lives Matter, Ben & Jerry’s is sure to anger most Americans who do not agree with the political causes that they are supporting.

Ben & Jerry’s is used to speaking up when it comes to supporting causes it cares about. The founders, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, have previously supported the World Wildlife Fund and Occupy Wall Street. They also supported Senator Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign and even honored him by creating a special ice cream flavor for him; chocolate mint with the name ”Bernie’s Yearning.”

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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The state of Louisiana wants to ensure that Blue Lives Matter. Recently, Governor John Bel Edwards expanded Louisiana’s Hate Crime Law to encompass protections for police officers. The new law, House Bill 953, also known as the Blue Lives Matter Bill, passed the Republican-controlled House and Senate with 92 to 0 and 33 to 3 votes, respectively. Now in the state of Louisiana, it’s unlawful to target people based on their perceived race, age, gender,  religion, color, creed, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry of a person, or because of actual or perceived membership with, service in, or employment with law enforcement officer, firefighter, or emergency medical services personnel. While the Governor and State Representatives may have created the law under the pretense of protecting the people who protect us, in actuality it debases the previously established protected classes under the hate crime law, and fails to address issues of racism connected with police criticism.

All the other protected classes of hate crimes in Louisiana have one thing in common: immutable characteristics. People cannot remove themselves from the identity of their race, age, gender, religion, color, creed, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, or ancestry; nor should they be harassed or vilified for these characteristics. It is for this reason that these groups benefit from special protection under the law. Adding a vocation to the same category as these groups stretches the bounds and limits of who or what qualifies as a protected class.

One of the organizations in opposition to the Louisiana law because of its categorization of emergency personal as a protected class is the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). According to the South Central Regional office’s website, the league is committed to combating anti-Semitism, hatred, and bigotry by investigating and exposing extremism while advocating for civil rights, religious freedom, and diversity. In a press release, ADL states its concerns,

Expanding the characteristics included in bias crime laws may open the door to a myriad of other categories to be added and simultaneously dilute current hate crimes legislation.  This bill confuses the purpose of the Hate Crimes Act and weakens its impact by adding more categories of people, who are better protected under other laws.

Essentially, House Bill 953 weakens the established law at an unnecessary expense since law enforcement groups can be protected by other laws.

State Representative Lance Harris wrote the bill after the murder of white Texas Deputy Daren H. Goforth by an African American man named Shannon J. Miles. The Blue Lives Matter organization itself began as a campaign to rally behind police officers after the targeted murders of Officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu during the heat of criticism against police brutality in New York.

But there are misperceptions on both sides. What the assailants of Deputy Goforth, Officer Ramos, and Officer Liu failed to understand when they attacked the officers is that the system under which police officers work is racist and unjust, but not necessarily every police officer carries those qualities. What Louisiana’s new law misunderstands is the climate in which police officers are serving. People in uniform are not under attack, however their trusted relationships with their communities continue to crumble under the deeply entrenched racism in this country.

Quite bluntly, House Bill 953 distracts from the issues of racism felt by many communities when it comes to police injustice. Before Blue Lives Mattered, Black Lives Mattered. Despite the fact that real issues of racism and injustice continue to rise within multiple police precincts across the U.S., Louisiana chose to focus on the protection of a group of people with contested vulnerability and established protection. As state representatives lose sight of the real issues, we as a nation cannot.

Dorsey Hill

Dorsey is a member of Barnard College’s class of 2016 with a major in Urban Studies and concentration in Political Science. As a native of Chicago and resident of New York City, Dorsey loves to explore the multiple cultural facets of cities. She has a deep interest in social justice issue especially those relevant to urban environments. Contact Dorsey at Staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

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