Ben & Jerry’s is suing its parent company Unilever, accusing them of violating the ice cream maker’s independent board by censoring their advocacy of Palestinian rights and accompanying pro-Palestinian statements. The lawsuit also claims that Unilever has threatened to dismantle Ben & Jerry’s board and sue its directors over their ongoing issues.
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In new legal documents filed on Wednesday (November 13) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Unilever allegedly prevented Ben & Jerry’s from calling for a ceasefire in Gaza at least four times. Unilever is also accused of violating an agreement that allowed its subsidiary to determine its own social mission.
Ben & Jerry’s lawsuit against parent company Unilever also claims that the latter contributed to Israeli groups and did not remain neutral on other foreign affairs issues, like the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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The new lawsuit claims Unilever breached an agreement to “respect and acknowledge the Ben & Jerry’s independent board’s primary responsibility over Ben & Jerry’s social mission,” adding, “Ben & Jerry’s has on four occasions attempted to publicly speak out in support of peace and human rights,” on many occasions about Palestinians.
As mentioned, Ben & Jerry’s has attempted to call for a ceasefire, support the safe passage of Palestinian refugees to Britain, support U.S. college students protesting against civilian deaths in Gaza, and demand a stop to U.S. military aid to Israel.
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However, Ben & Jerry’s said, “Unilever has silenced each of these efforts.” Responding to the latest Ben & Jerry’s lawsuit, Unilever said, “Our heart goes out to all victims of the tragic events in the Middle East. We reject the claims made by B&J’s social mission board, and we will defend our case very strongly. We would not comment further on this legal matter.”
This lawsuit is part of an ongoing public feud between Ben & Jerry’s and Unilever. Ben & Jerry’s has previously clashed with its parent company when they were told their products would no longer be sold in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Subsequently, Unilever sold Ben & Jerry’s Israel division to a local operation, forcing them to sue its parent company. Ben & Jerry’s board sued Unilever in 2022 for breaching its 2000 merger agreement which allowed the ice cream maker to create its own social mission. They eventually settled.
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