A number of climbing brands recently announced that they have joined the Stop Hate for Profit campaign. By joining the ongoing movement, those entities vowed to suspend Facebook and Instagram advertising globally for the foreseeable future. A message titled “Demand Change” on stophateforprofit.org stated: “We’re urging individuals to sign the petition to #StopHateforProfit and send a message to Facebook that profits will never be worth supporting hate and misinformation of any kind.” The message continued, “We know what Facebook did. They allowed incitement to violence against protestors fighting for racial justice in America in the wake of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery, Rayshard Brooks and so many others. They named Breitbart News a ‘trusted news source’ and made The Daily Caller a ‘fact checker’ despite both publications having records of working with known white nationalists.”
Clif Bar was one of the latest companies to publicly announce it’s “joining Color of Change, NAACP, ADL and other leading civil rights organizations as part of the Stop Hate for Profit movement,” according to a Clif Bar press release. Ascent Ventures also announced that its gyms—The Pad Climbing and The Pad Origin—had joined the Stop Hate for Profit campaign too. “We in the PadFam believe that All Climbers are All Good and attempt to practice inclusion and tolerance for all non-hateful beliefs,” read a statement on the website of Ascent Ventures, the parent company of the aforementioned gyms. “But we also fully believe that the unchecked misinformation spread on Facebook and other social media outlets is causing lasting damage to our selves [sic] and our country.”
A list of participating businesses on the Stop Hate for Profit website listed a number of other climbing-related brands, including Adidas, Arc’teryx, Outdoor Research, Patagonia, REI and The North Face, among others. The website also noted that the campaign calls for the halt of only paid advertising, not all social media activities, and acknowledged that it may be difficult for some outlets to cease all paid ads. “We are specifically asking businesses to pause advertising. We recognize that nonprofits may not be able to pause their ads because of the need to amplify their work, and we welcome their support whether or not they decide to pause their spending. Stop Hate for Profit is not asking organizations or political campaigns—especially organizations fighting for racial justice—to stop running Facebook ads,” reads a text on the sign-up page for businesses.
While Climbing Business Journal has a limited budget for paid advertising on Facebook and Instagram, we have also decided to halt advertising on these platforms. Climbing gyms interested in joining the campaign can find additional information on the Stop Hate for Profit website.
Climbing Business Journal is an independent news outlet dedicated to covering the indoor climbing industry. Here you will find the latest coverage of climbing industry news, gym developments, industry best practices, risk management, climbing competitions, youth coaching and routesetting. Have an article idea? CBJ loves to hear from readers like you!
