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It began in early August (OK, that’s like one week ago), when Al Jazeera announced: “Garnier care packages boost Israeli soldiers’ beauty regimens, ” adding, “Cosmetic donations spark backlash from opponents of Gaza offensive.”
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The report said care packages of deodorants, soaps and other cosmetics sent to female Israeli soldiers are sparking outrage online. This is because Israel advocacy group Stand With Us posted several Facebook photos of the care packages, which they said were donated by Garnier Israel.
The actual text read: “We are honored to be delivering these ‘girly’ care packages for our lovely female IDF fighters! Today’s delivery of care packages was stocked with thousands of products for our girls protecting Israel. They even received facial soaps and minerals, so they can still pamper themselves, even in times of war!”
The post went viral and received more than 10, 000 comments, some praising and some criticizing the decision to donate the cosmetics to the soldiers. The post has been shared more than 22, 000 times. A lot of the discussion involved some calling IDF soldiers names and then others defending their honor, and so on. You’ve been to these online bashes.
The battle spread to other social media outlets, Many commenters called for an immediate boycott of Garnier products, with some posting pictures of products they were throwing away in protest. This tweet was kind of typical of the non-IDF side.
So Garnier had to do something, at least in the UK. Kari Kerr, Garnier’s Corporate Communications Director in the UK, announced that the gifts, 500 products altogether, had been handed out to the IDF ladies, as “part of a local retailer initiative” and was “managed strictly at local market level.”
See? It wasn’t them. Please don’t boycott them, if you must boycott anyone, boycott the them in Tel Aviv. If you live in London, make sure to return all your Tel Aviv purchased Garnier items.
Kari Kerr (now, there’s a name that’s fun to say) said that the company did not support the initiative, nor does it want its products to be used in any future campaign.
You’ll notice, for instance, that in Iraq today, neither the ISIS fanatics nor the embattled Kurds are using Garneir products. We’re told they use mostly mud and ox droppings. Which, come to think of, so did the rest of Garnier’s press release, issued by Kari Kerr(y):
“Garnier values peace and harmony and has a strict policy of not getting involved in any conflict or political matter .… and we are very sorry if anyone was offended.”
Hugh Lanning, chairman of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel and anyone who does business with Israel, or utters the name Israel without cursing and spitting three times, has welcomed Garnier’s statement, was delighted, and told the IBTimes UK that he would welcomed “companies that are willing to accept corporate responsibility.”
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign director Sarah Colborne added, in a written statement:
“We are pleased to hear that Garnier have distanced themselves from the attempt to associate them with the Israeli Forces. It is a pity they did not respond earlier to numerous messages asking them to do so. The Israel lobby group, Stand With Us, claim that Garnier Israel donated the packages to the soldiers. Therefore we urge Garnier to take the issue up with them and issue an urgent statement clarifying whether the company did or did not donate care packages.”
So, there you have it. The next IDF women looking for free cosmetics will have to smuggle them through a Gaza tunnel, like everybody else.
