Pro-Trump Goya CEO Pushes Back Against Boycott Calls

The cancel culture has come for Goya Foods CEO Robert Unanue and he’s not willing to go quietly into that good night.

Unanue made some glowing comments about Donald Trump that sent the social media jackals after him. #goyaway and #boycottgoya were trending on Twitter.

Washington Examiner:

“We’re all truly blessed … to have a leader, like President Trump, who is a builder,” Unanue said Thrusday during his Rose Garden speech aimed at addressing Trump’s Hispanic Prosperity Initiative. “We have an incredible builder, and we pray. We pray for our leadership, our president.”

Unanue has been a Hispanic leader since he became CEO of the popular brand of Latino foods in 2005. Founded by his grandfather in 1936 who immigrated from Spain, Goya has an impressive reach, distributing food throughout the United States and Latin America. He vigorously defended himself on “Fox and Friends” on Friday.

Robert Unanue appeared on Fox & Friends Friday morning and refused to back down, calling the boycott “suppression of speech,” and pointed out that he answered President Obama’s call to attend the White House as well.

“So, you’re allowed to talk good or to praise one president, but you’re not allowed … to aid in economic and educational prosperity? And you make a positive comment, all of a sudden, it is not acceptable,” Unanue said.

Unanue is apparently an old-world, courtly man with impeccable manners. But he didn’t speak “truth to power” to Trump so he is to be thrown into the outer darkness.

Apparently, being polite is a mortal sin in some parts of America today.

Jumping on the boycott bandwagon was Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who shared a do-it-yourself recipe for adobo that you can use instead of buying the evil Goya brand.

Get yourself friends like these: this tweet wasn’t up for TWO MINUTES when my friend hit me up with the recipe. (Their note: “the ginger is controversial, but worth it”)

(For accessibility:
4 Salt, 1 paprika, 1 cumin, 1 celery powder, 2 garlic powder, .5 ginger , 1 chili powder) pic.twitter.com/5WFe9sL5jE

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 10, 2020

A CNN contributor, Raul A. Reyes, actually thinks calls for a boycott are going to work. He says that Unanue has “undermined his own business and profoundly disrespected his Latino customers.” But he also gives the reason why the boycott is meaningless.

There is an element of pathos here, too. Latinos have a unique relationship with Goya Foods because Latinos love Goya products. They remind people of their grandmother’s favorite recipe or delicious holiday meals. For some immigrants, Goya’s products are literally a taste of home. They can be found in virtually every Latino household across the country. So as word has spread about Unanue’s remarks, many Latinos have felt a mixture of betrayal and sadness that a beloved brand is now tarnished by an association with Trump. This is a boycott that is rooted in sadness as much as it is rooted in anger and outrage.

People are going to give up their “grandmother’s favorite recipe” because the chairman who no one has heard of except Hispanic activists, said nice things about the president? Laughable.

There is creeping desperation that’s overtaking any rational opposition to Trump. Democrats have always been unhinged about Trump, and the left has burst their blood vessels every time the president opens his mouth. But the closer we get to the election, the more desperate the opposition is getting.

A successful boycott of the Hispanic version of Kelloggs or Nestle is not very likely.