Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. reported significant losses on Wednesday following a tweet from President Trump calling for a complete boycott of the company for prohibiting employees from wearing MAGA or Blue Lives Matter apparel while Black Lives Matter apparel is allowed.
Don’t buy GOODYEAR TIRES – They announced a BAN ON MAGA HATS. Get better tires for far less! (This is what the Radical Left Democrats do. Two can play the same game, and we have to start playing it now!).
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 19, 2020
“Don’t buy GOODYEAR TIRES – They announced a BAN ON MAGA HATS, get better tires for far less!”, Trump said on Wednesday morning.
Goodyear shares fell 5.86% while rival competitor Bridgestone Corp. saw its shares rise by 1.42%. While it’s difficult to make a causal link, the president clout with his supporters shouldn’t be underestimated.
The spat began after Topeka-based WIBW-TV reported on an employee complaint claiming that Goodyear was being discriminatory towards Trump and Blue Lives Matter supporters by limiting their expression in the workplace.
This turned out to be more than just a claim, however. A photo was included with the report showing a PowerPoint slide in the company’s diversity training program which labels MAGA, Blue Lives Matter, All Lives Matter, and other politically affiliated slogans or materials as unacceptable.
