By Jack Phillips of The Epoch Times
Coca-Cola appeared to delete a paragraph on its website that supported Black Lives Matter, coming as Black Lives Matter drew controversy for backing Hamas.
“Earlier this month, Sprite announced a $500,000 contribution to the Black Lives Matter Global Network in a social post committing action in the fight for racial justice. On June 28, the brand debuted a new TV commercial during the 2020 BET Awards telecast showcasing Black America’s resilience, excellence and optimism. The 60-second spot titled ‘Dreams Realized’ emphasizes Sprite’s commitment to making young Black creators’ dreams a reality and to inspire the next generation to do more and dream bigger,” an archived version of the Coca-Cola-owned Sprite website page says.
A current version of the web page omitted that paragraph, suggesting the beverage giant deleted it. It appears changes were made to the web page on Oct. 20 and Oct. 21, according to Archive.org records. The Epoch Times has reached out to Coca-Cola, which has not addressed the matter publicly, for comment on Sunday.
It came after Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) made reference to the Coca-Cola website and tied its support of Black Lives Matter to backing Hamas, a U.S. State Department-designated terrorist group that carried out multiple attacks on Israel earlier this month that left hundreds of civilians—including children—dead. Israel has responded by embarking on a bombing campaign of Gaza, where Hamas operates.
“CAUGHT RED-HANDED. [Coca-Cola] deletes its support for BLM. One screenshot is of [Coca-Cola’s] website before BLM supported Hamas parachuting into a concert to kill Israeli civilians,” Mr. Cruz wrote on social media website X. “The other is from this morning. Editing your website is not enough. Americans DEMAND an apology.”
CAUGHT RED-HANDED. @CocaCola deletes its support for BLM.
One screenshot is of @CocaCola‘s website before BLM supported Hamas parachuting into a concert to kill Israeli civilians.
The other is from this morning.
Editing your website is not enough. Americans DEMAND an apology. pic.twitter.com/WKRdxVrTu8
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) October 20, 2023
On his podcast, “The Verdict,” he criticized Coca-Cola and other companies days before that for their support of Black Lives Matter in the wake of the Hamas attacks.
Last week, he also made reference to the corporate support in another post on X: “For every corporate donor who sent millions to BLM—including Amazon, Apple, BlackRock & Bank of America—do you regret supporting such a virulently antisemitic organization?”
It came after a Black Lives Matter group wrote on X—days after the Hamas attacks—that it backed the group and Palestinians.
“As Black people continue the fight to end militarism and mass incarceration in our own communities, let us understand the resistance in Palestine as an attempt to tear down the gates of the world’s largest open-air prison,” BLM Grassroots wrote on Oct. 9. “As a radical Black organization grounded in abolitionist ideals, we see clear parallels between Black and Palestinian people. For lasting peace to come, the entire apartheid system must be dismantled.”
“Do you support Black Lives Matter’s Marxist agenda supporting Hamas? Are you antisemites? Do you support that we need to end Israel?” the Texas senator asked.
There have been reports and video footage of Hamas terrorists using parachutes and other airborne devices in a series of surprise attacks on Oct. 7.
After deleting the post, the group wrote that “we sent out [messages] that we aren’t proud of. We stand with Palestine [and] the people who will do what they must to live free. Our hearts are with the grieving mothers, those rescuing babies from rubble, who are in danger of being wiped out completely.”
