Boycotting Arizona

  • Share
  • Read Later

Incensed by Arizona’s stiff new immigration law, Rep. Raul Grijalva, the Democrat representing the state’s massive 7th district, took the unusual step of calling for a commercial boycott of his own state even before Gov. Jan Brewer signed the measure. Since then the boycott theme has gained traction, with lawmakers in Los Angeles and San Francisco pressing for similar initiatives. Over at Daily Kos, there’s a push to boycott next year’s MLB All-Star Game, which is slated to be held at Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix. (As the author notes, there’s precedent for politics spilling over into sports — the state lost the 1993 Super Bowl because it wouldn’t make Martin Luther King, Jr. Day a paid state holiday.)

But the boycott bandwagon is already getting a little crowded. The New York Daily News reports:

Opponents of Arizona’s new anti-immigrant law are calling for a boycott of the state’s products – including the popular Arizona Iced Tea.

The problem: Arizona Iced Tea is actually brewed in New York.

Online, misguided tea fans vowed to switch to Lipton or Snapple.

“Dear Arizona: If you don’t change your immigration policy, I will have to stop drinking your enjoyable brand of iced tea,” Twittered Jody Beth in Los Angeles.

“It is the drink of fascists,” wrote Travis Nichols in Chicago.