Companies Condemn Voting Laws

By Yaw Bonsu

SYRACUSE N.Y. – Following the controversy surrounding Georgia’s SB 202 voting law, some of the biggest companies in the world are fighting back against the voting injustice.

Netflix, Best Buy and Microsoft are among the tons of companies that signed onto an ad printed in the New York Times and Washington Post. 

The ad, titled ‘We Stand For Democracy’ was made as a message to consumers everywhere, saying that they will not stand of any type of injustice that limits the rights of citizens to cast a ballot.

Part of the ad reads as follows:

For American democracy to work for any of us, we must ensure the right to vote for all of us. We should feel a responsibility to defend the right to vote and to oppose any discriminatory legislation or measures that restrict or prevent any eligible voter from having an equal and fair opportunity to cast a ballot.

This message is a part of a neverending issue in the United States: voting rights. And for a battle so large, it will take more than the largest corporations in the country to solve it. And that is exactly what this ad provided, an opportunity for anyone to shed their frustration surrounding limiting voting rights and to show support for equal ballot casting.

These companies were joined alongside legal firms and many notable celebrities in signing on for this ad. On the music side, it included artists such as Ariana Grande and Demi Lovato. In acting, Leo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo as well as five-time NBA Champion Earvin “Magic” Johnson.

Those are just five of the hundreds of celebrities that signed on for the ad. Other big names included Katy Perry, Tracee Ellis Ross, Samuel L. Jackson among many, many others. However, this is not the beginning of high-ranking companies and celebrities speaking out in relation to new Georgia voting laws.

Major League Baseball created the ripple effect by moving its all-star game from Atlanta to Denver. 

Companies such as Coca-Cola, Delta and Home Depot are among those who did not want to sign onto the New York Times and Washington Post ad. However, after citizens threatened to boycott the products that come with these corporations, the aforementioned companies, decided to but remained hesitant towards signing the ad.