EA Sports, Star Wars, Amazon, and others issued statements following a weekend of looting and rioting in major cities across the United States.
The official Madden NFL 20 Twitter account posted an official statement from EA Sports detailing they would no longer be celebrating Madden NFL 21 on June 1st.
Earlier in May they had previously announced they would be releasing a first look in the beginning of June.
So much more than a name…
First look coming soon #Madden21 pic.twitter.com/4GqcM6p6qS
— Madden NFL 20 (@EAMaddenNFL) May 24, 2020
The statement reads, “Tomorrow, we had committed to celebrating Madden NFL 21 with you, but we’re not going to do that now.”
It continued, “We stand with our African American/Black community of friends, players, colleagues and partners. Our immediate attention is on actions we can take to drive change against the unjust treatment and systemic bias that is plaguing the nation and our world.”
The statement concluded, “We’ll find another time to talk football with you. Because this is bigger than a game, bigger than sports, and needs all of us to stand together and commit to change.”
An official statement from EA SPORTS pic.twitter.com/MKdgJjvKJB
— Madden NFL 20 (@EAMaddenNFL) May 31, 2020
EA Sports wasn’t the only video game to issue a statement. Bethesda, the developer behind the Fall Out and Elder Scrolls series issued their own statement.
It reads, “Together we stand united with Black communities to listen and speak up against inequity, oppression, and racism. Not just now, but always. #BlackLivesMatter.”
#BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/Hg1VIdEqmi
— Bethesda (@bethesda) June 1, 2020
Other corporations and major entertainment companies issued their own statements including Netflix, Amazon, and Star Wars.
Star Wars posted to their official Twitter account, “We stand against racism. We stand for inclusion. We stand with our fellow Black employees, storytellers, creators and the entire Black community. We must unite and speak out.”
— Star Wars (@starwars) May 31, 2020
The Star Wars statement was also posted to the official Disney account.
— Disney (@Disney) May 31, 2020
Netflix wrote, “To be silent is to be complicit. Black lives matter.”
They added, “We have a platform, and we have a duty to our Black members, employees, creators and talent to speak up.”
To be silent is to be complicit.
Black lives matter.We have a platform, and we have a duty to our Black members, employees, creators and talent to speak up.
— Netflix (@netflix) May 30, 2020
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Amazon Prime Video’s statement reads, “Together we stand with the black community – colleagues, artists, writers, storytellers, producers, our viewers – and all allies in the fight against racism and injustice.”
It concluded, “#BlackLivesMatter.”
— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) May 31, 2020
Disney-owned Hulu also issued a statement, “We support Black lives. Today, and every day. You are seen. You are heard. And we are with you.”
We support Black lives. Today, and every day. You are seen. You are heard. And we are with you.
— Hulu (@hulu) May 31, 2020
AT&T’s newly launched streaming service changed their name to #BlackLivesMatter. They also responded to Hulu’s statement with a purple heart emoji.
💜
— #BlackLivesMatter (@hbomax) May 31, 2020
AT&T’s official account tweeted, “Our advocacy toward equality and inclusivity continues today and will for the future.”
An image accompanying the tweet reads, “The events of the past few days underscore the violence and racism faced by black people in America today. At AT&T we stand for equality and embrace freedom.”
Our advocacy toward equality and inclusivity continues today and will for the future. pic.twitter.com/gpMYSXKTX2
— AT&T (@ATT) May 31, 2020
It wasn’t just entertainment companies making statements to Twitter. Nike, who has been accused of making their sneakers with slave labor in China as recently as March 2020, released a minute long video ad.
The ad reads, “For once, Don’t do it. Don’t pretend there’s not a problem in America. Don’t turn your back on racism. Don’t accept innocent lives being taken from us. Don’t make any more excuses. Don’t think this doesn’t affect you.”
It continues, “Don’t sit back and be silent. Don’t think you can’t be part of the change. Let’s all be part of the change.”
Let’s all be part of the change.#UntilWeAllWin pic.twitter.com/guhAG48Wbp
— Nike (@Nike) May 29, 2020
What do you make of these Twitter statements from these corporations?