Overview

• Ben & Jerry's issued a statement on July 4 calling for the U.S. to return land taken from Native Americans, igniting criticism and calls for boycotts.
• The ice cream company specifically advocated for returning Mount Rushmore and the Black Hills to the Lakota tribe.
• Ben & Jerry's parent company Unilever lost nearly $2 billion in market value following the controversial statement.
• The governor of South Dakota and U.S. senators condemned Ben & Jerry's statement and defended Mount Rushmore.
• A Native American chief in Vermont said the land Ben & Jerry's headquarters sits on belongs to the Abenaki tribe, indicating a willingness to discuss the issue with the company.