Tires don’t get as much attention as they should, but they’re attracting a lot more interest than usual thanks to a tweet by President Trump.
Earlier today, Trump told his 85 million Twitter followers “Don’t buy Goodyear tires – They announced a ban on MAGA [Make America Great Again] hats. Get better tires for far less!”
While the tweet seemingly came out of nowhere, Politico reports it is an apparent reference to a “diversity training slideshow” which went viral earlier this week. The slide in question listed “Black Lives Matter” and “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride” as acceptable, but deemed “Blue Lives Matter,” “All Lives Matter,” “MAGA Attire” and “Political Affiliated Slogans or Material” as unacceptable.
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
The image provoked a firestorm of controversy and Goodyear quickly released a statement acknowledging the picture “sparked a strong reaction.” However, they said the slide was “not created or distributed by Goodyear corporate, nor was it part of a diversity training class.”
The company went on to say they have “zero tolerance for any forms of harassment or discrimination” and, as part of this effort, they ask associates to “refrain from workplace expressions in support of political campaigning for any candidate or political party, as well as similar forms of advocacy that fall outside the scope of racial justice and equity issues.” Goodyear also added they “wholeheartedly” support both “equality and law enforcement,” and stated these are not “mutually exclusive.”
Goodyear has released a statement after an employee said the slide presented in a training was discriminatory. https://t.co/H9B1gRu2r7
— WIBW (@wibw) August 18, 2020
Of course, the company didn’t explain the slide in question so it remains unclear if the image was doctored, created by a third-party or created in-house without corporate approval.
Regardless, Trump’s push to boycott an American company didn’t sit well with a number of people and some pointed out a Goodyear boycott would benefit rivals based overseas. Reuters also noted Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown called it “absolutely despicable that the President would call for a boycott of an American company, based in Akron, that employs thousands of U.S. workers.”
