Blog 1: Ben & Jerry's Activism & Ice Cream

Ben & Jerry's, the globally recognized ice cream company, incorporates human activism into their social media content. The human activism present on the brand's social media has nothing to do with the well-known business. This makes the location of the activism an interesting choice for the brand's identity and for consumers who might not expect this kind of content.

Ben & Jerry's has an entire highlight section dedicated to the brand's values on the company's Instagram. The 'values' highlight is ordered first, before the other highlights, which shows the frequency with which they advocate for their values as a brand. The highlight includes their support for human freedom and the ways the company has been involved in related events to urge people to join them. For example, one of the highlights says, "Today and every day, join us in choosing community!" In a highlight story about walking for peace and freedom of speech (Instagram 2025). The brand demonstrates its support for human liberty and freedom of speech by attending protests and related events and offering ice cream as a gesture of solidarity. In the highlight, there are photos of people marching, holding signs that read "resist and persist," as well as links to the march so that people can gather more information about the event (Instagram 2025). The brand also posts the definitions of politically related words, such as 'oligarchy' and 'democracy', as a way of educating people so that they can form their own opinion on the matter at hand. 

On September 26th, Ben & Jerry's made a post referencing the political and social issue of climate change and human inequality. The post reads, "when temperatures rise, communities of color take the heat," containing information on who is most responsible for climate change and the inequalities placed on communities of colour due to the issue of climate change and toxic racism (Instagram 2025). This post had no direct correlation to what the brand sells; however, it aligns with and represents the brand's values of human liberty, climate change, and inequality. 

Ben & Jerry's references to political and social issues via Instagram are appropriate, given the brand's visible effort to voice the need for change in America. Sources suggest that Ben & Jerry’s voice on political and social issues is a part of their business model. Regardless of the references' irrelevance to what the brand sells, they are projecting their values onto their consumers in the hope of aligning with them. Ben & Jerry's ultimate purpose in referencing issues of racial injustice and climate change is to appear authentic as a brand and contribute to making a positive difference in society. 

If I were in charge of the company's social media activities, I would continue to engage in activism on social and political matters to demonstrate consistency in the brand's values, which reflects the company's identity. However, I would increase consumers' engagement in the activism activities to prove that social and political activism is not just a marketing tactic for the business. Inviting people to share their stories about the issues being addressed will increase engagement by connecting them to real-life experiences.

Sourced from the Instagram feed of Ben & Jerry's.