Ben & Jerry’s co-founder, Ben Cohen, was arrested on Capitol Hill for protesting during a Senate hearing. Cohen was criticizing the United States’ continuous funding of military aid to Israel.
The multi-millionaire confronted Department of Health Services Secretary RFK Jr. about cuts to Medicaid. In a video that has gone viral on social media, Cohen was seen in cuffs, being escorted by US Capitol Police.
“You need to let food into Gaza! You need to let food to starving kids!” Cohen said on his way out of the building.
Cohen was asked by the person behind the camera about what he said in the hearing.
He replied, “I said that Congress is paying to bomb poor kids in Gaza and paying for it by kicking poor kids off of Medicaid in the US!”
Praise for Ben Cohen’s activism
Needless to say, Ben Cohen’s protest gained social media praise. Many have condemned Ben Cohen’s arrest. One X user wrote, “Freedom of speech until you call out a genocide.”
Journalist Mehdi Hasan said that his friend is “a true hero—and makes the best ice cream.”
Senatorial candidate Dr. Abdul El-Sayed also commented on the issue. He wrote, “It should say something about America rn that the guy who invented Cherry Garcia now has to spend his time reminding us that they’re cutting your Medicaid to buy bombs.”
Protests in the Capitol fall under unlawful activities. Because of the restrictions, activists are often arrested on Capitol premises and escorted out. Recently, veteran anti-war protestors gathered at the Cannon Rotunda to protest the Iran war.
Although no protester was harmed, footage of Capitol Hill Police arresting peaceful protesters easily comes across as state censorship. Even under lawful justification, it is still censorship.
Ben & Jerry’s support of social justice
But Cohen’s activism comes as no surprise. Ben & Jerry, as an ice cream brand, spoke against Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian land. As an act of condemnation of Israel’s settler colonialism, the brand’s independent board of directors attempted to stop sales of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in occupied Palestinian land.
This wouldn’t be the first act of defiance the ice cream brand showed. In fact, the brand is known for its fearless advocacy for human rights, social justice, and environmental protection. Ben & Jerry’s would, at times, feature the causes they care about on their packaging. Their support for the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as same-sex marriage, garnered the brand significant conservative backlash.
Essentially, it wouldn’t be Ben & Jerry’s if the company weren’t taking an active and clear stance on matters of social justice. Ben Cohen, the brand’s co-founder, is just as tireless about his activism.
Recently, a cooking video he posted included an explanation about how Congress is buying F-35 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin. The program, according to Cohen, is expected to have a lifetime cost of $800 million. These numbers from Cohen are unverified. But nevertheless, the F-35 program is considered the US government’s most expensive weapons system in US history in terms of total cost.
Needless to say, Cohen’s cooking videos easily beat any mukbang video where social impact is concerned. Although he was seen with Capitol Police taking him away, Cohen is now back to posting cooking videos. He’s now trying (and failing) to toss what appears to be pizza dough.
(featured image: Hasan Minhaj)
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