Two of the UK’s biggest tea brands have sparked an incredible hashtag after taking on a Yorkshire-based far-right vlogger who was tweeting in opposition to the Black Lives Matter movement.
In June, Laura Towler said she was “dead chuffed” that Yorkshire Tea hadn’t come out in support of worldwide protests at the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis earlier this month.
But the brand responded bluntly, telling her: “Please don’t buy our tea again. We’re taking some time to educate ourselves and plan proper action before we post.
“We stand against racism”
In a sadly predictable manner, the tweet sparked calls for a boycott from people who took offence at a brand opposing racism.
This then caused PG Tips to get involved, spawning the #solidaritea hashtag which was still trending on Twitter on Tuesday morning.
More Black Lives Matter protests are planned for this week and Boris Johnson has said they had awakened an “incontrovertible, undeniable feeling of injustice” worldwide.
Floyd, who died after a police officer in Minneapolis restrained him by holding a knee on his neck, will be buried in his home town of Houston in Texas on Tuesday.
A symbolic and socially distanced commemoration is planned at the Nelson Mandela statue in Parliament Square in London at 5pm, organised by Stand Up To Racism.
Following protests across the UK on the weekend, the prime minister – who had previously condemned the “thuggery” by a minority that marred some demonstrations – acknowledged many of the activists’ concerns were “founded on a cold reality”.
He said leaders “simply can’t ignore” concerns that Black, Asian and minority ethnic (Bame) groups face discrimination in education, employment and in law.