Upon reading that one of my favorite companies is in the midst of a public lawsuit in which they are accused of discriminating against Norwegians, I felt betrayed. I have been an avid supporter of this company for as long as I can remember, and I feel a personal connection to them and their brand. To find out that they were discriminating against a culture I associate with was saddening.
Finding out that your favorite company is discriminating against any type of culture or ethnicity is unfortunate, but it is especially painful when you are associated with that group. I understand that these are only claims at this point, and the company is innocent until proven guilty. But I can’t help but think that these claims are true. If these claims turn out to be true, my allegiance to this brand would slightly change. I’m not the type to throw out all of the products I own from that brand, but I would consider searching for another company I can support in the future. Being Norwegian is not a very relevant part of who I am, so the brand discriminating against them does not hurt me a lot. This public lawsuit would cause my attitude towards the company to shift from one of my favorite brands, to one that I may only use when I have to.
One thing this lawsuit would definitely affect is my decision to apply for work at that company in the future. If I knew they discriminated against Norwegian people in the past, then I would likely avoid applying to work their. I would not enjoy working somewhere I felt discriminated against, or somewhere I felt I wasn’t appreciated because of my ethnicity.
4 replies on “Experiences with discrimination”
Even though I am not Norwegian, I probably would react the same as you. As I said in my post if a company that I supported discriminated against Arab-Muslims, I don’t think I would get rid of all of the products that I have for the company, but moving forward I wouldn’t support them.
Based on your response, you don’t heavily associate yourself as Norwagian, but to a certain extent you are protective of the people who you identify with which will affect your response to a lawsuit like this.
Hey Benjamin,
I agree with your point about supporting the company. Depending on the product or service they supply, I may still wear their product or use it in an attempt to not waste. I wouldn’t want to throw out an appliance or my whole wardrobe because that would be really wasteful. I agree with your point as well that it would be really uncomfortable to apply to work in a place that you know discriminates against a group you identify with. Thank you for sharing!
Hi Ben!
I agree with the points you made about still utilizing the product, as you have already paid for it and you’re not trying to be wasteful. You have already supported them when buying the product originally so there is not much reasoning to waste that. But definitely look to supporting another similar question. That is really unfortunate to have happened.
HI Benjamin!
I think you brought up a really good point in your post when you talked about how the company is innocent until proven guilty. Even though it is currently just a claim, as you mentioned, it can still change your perception. Unfortunately for companies if a false claim is made I imagine they will still lose a lot of business as people are quick to believe something negative. I like how you worked through your thought process, thanks for sharing!