Last April, a hugely popular beer brand became the target of a successful boycott that severely impacted its sales.
Now, Paris Hilton is on the receiving end of criticism and a petition drive from like-minded activist groups.
Related: Bud Light boycott could have had an odd ending
Anheuser-Busch (BUD) had sent transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney some specially made cans of Bud Light with likenesses of Mulvaney's face on them as part of an effort to appeal to the transgender and LGBTQ+ community.
When Mulvaney featured the Bud Light cans in a social media post, the boycott began.
More recently, an advertisement for a Hilton Hotels (HLT) loyalty points program has activist groups crying foul:
'That's hot,' Paris Hilton says in the ad
The advertisement features a crowd of men and women, all dressed in pink, assembling in a hotel lobby with travel bags and their dogs.
"Hilton Honors slays," says one woman dressed in pink, looking at her phone. "Obsessed," adds a man, staring into his device.
"Points for a free stay?" asks another woman. "Yes, please."
"All these perks? We're sliving," says a woman in sunglasses, referring to Paris Hilton's term for slaying and living the good life — with glamour and success.
"When you want the celebrity treatment, no matter who you are, it matters where you stay," a narrator is heard saying.
"That's hot," Paris Hilton says.
After viewing the ad, activist group One Million Moms (OMM) published a story on its website with the title, "Hilton Attempts to Glamorize Sin."
The OMM story concludes with a link enabling readers to to sign a petition "urging Hilton to pull its LGBTQ-inclusive ad immediately."
Shutterstock
Activist groups have different reactions to the Hilton advertisement
One Million Moms writes that it believes Hilton is advocating an agenda with the commercial.
"Hilton is attempting to normalize the LGBTQ lifestyle with its liberal advertising choices," the organization wrote. "The hotel chain is obviously pushing the LGBTQ agenda with this commercial, which depicts individuals, couples, and families, all in obviously gender-confused roles."
The petition states, in part, "Your commercial featuring a homosexual couple and men in drag offends me, and it also offends many other conservative consumers."
The publication Them viewed the petition and offered a reaction of its own.
"There is no greater rivalry than that which exists between conservatives and advertisements that are nominally gay," it wrote. "The latest brand that's been accused of promoting the woke agenda? None other than Hilton Hotels & Resorts."
"It's unclear where the supposed men in drag are, considering that the ad features more masc individuals in suits and more femme individuals in dresses," Them added.
Hilton Honors members receive exclusive perks such as earning points on stays that can be turned into free nights, Hilton explains on its website.
Related: Veteran fund manager picks favorite stocks for 2024
