Behind the boycott: Integrity matters (or, Don’t get played in the name of resistance)

Every day, more Americans start to realize that the gnawing sense of unease living daily in the pits of their stomachs is the embodied realization that things in our country are going very poorly. That our country no longer is the same nation it was before the Inauguration and that we are, in fact, living in the middle of a hostile takeover. A coup in which the checks and balances the founders created to prevent the United States from ever having a king aren’t working, because the people behind the checks and balances are either beholden to the current regime masquerading as an administration or they are simply scared for their lives.

Americans are facing the reality that while we have read about other countries being destabilized, we assumed it could never happen to us. And why would we? Despite our original sins and many flaws, until this moment the United States was the gold standard—the leader of the free world—and now, well…now, our allies can’t trust us, and we are the laughingstock of the world.

I mean, we have an unelected co-president who is demolishing our country and a third of our citizens are under some cult-like spell and cheering it on because our low literacy rates have convinced them that Ketamine Ken is omnipotent and everything he touches turns to gold. And even if he was a genius businessman (which he isn’t) and even if he were truly self-made (he isn’t—he inherited a fortune to start and his companies rake in billions from government contracts and federal subsidies), the truth is that running corporations and operating a government that supports 350 million people are nowhere near the same thing. In six weeks, this man and his actions have plunged our nation into economic uncertainty with reports that we are almost certainly headed toward a recession with no safety nets and where anyone other than straight, white heterosexual men are being shuffled off to second-class citizenship and people in power are undoing 60 years of social progress and civil rights with frightening speed.

Suffice to say that fears are running high, and people are seeking actions and leaders to move us forward. Which, in the era of social media, makes us ripe for exploitation by others seeking to enrich themselves while selling us hope and action.

For the last few weeks, social media spaces have been buzzing about economic boycotts to push back against the oligarchs and corporations who are making record-breaking profits while the average person struggles to pay rent, keep the lights on, and put food on the table. The premise was simple: a day where people would refrain from spending money unless it was a critical need such as food, gas/transportation, or medical needs. The stated goal was to shock the corporations by denying them our money for a 24-hour period on February 28, with other planned economic blackouts and weeklong boycotts to follow in the months ahead.

In theory, it sounded like a great idea and simple enough to be accessible to all, but to plan for nationwide action in a country with myriad differences across the multitude of states we have, was it simple?

No, and as the date drew closer and the idea picked up steam, the mandate for the day shifted toward “don’t shop big corporations and big-box stores but support locally owned businesses,” with many small local businesses getting in on the “boycott” asking you to support them on no-shop day. Of course, as a friend said to me while we were out the night before the boycott kicked off, “What does local even mean in today’s world?” Sure, you are at the local pub that isn’t a chain but if they are serving beverages from national and international corporations and the food is from a major distributor, is it really local?

Prior to boycott day, many seasoned organizers and movement folks—including yours truly—pondered what the goal was here. What is the concrete ask that you are looking to get answered by this action? For many people, though, hearing those questions was seen as not supportive and an attempt to take away from people wanting to do something.

In the end, despite my own questions, including who exactly the organizers are and what is the end goal, I did boost the event though I don’t think that any one-day boycott is going to shake the walls. My thoughts are that based on how quarterly earnings reports operate, we would need a minimum of a month of hardcore boycotts to even begin to touch the bottom line of the corporations. We would need to create mutual aid systems and infrastructure so that as many people as possible could participate. People would need rides to shop locally so they can avoid online retailers like Amazon. We would need meal deliveries, etc. I could go on and on but you get the idea. The thing is that most of what is needed to sustain a long-term economic shutdown requires localized organizing in every state. It simply can’t be sustainable or create the impact that is desired as an online-only effort.

For crying out loud, this event was organized for a Friday on the last day of the month, For many people living paycheck to paycheck, they were already being excluded because they most likely are low on food, gas, and other incidentals at that point and may have just literally got paid.

I was still willing to overlook the lack of depth in the planning of this event until the news broke about who was behind the event. The boycott was listed as being sponsored by the People’s Union USA, a newly formed advocacy group that was just started in early February 2025 by a 57-year-old Chicago resident, John Schwarz, who just a few months ago was working as a meditation teacher and posting upbeat affirmations on his Instagram account, where he goes by the handle, theonecalledjai.

In this climate where legitimate nonprofit organizations are struggling to survive and seasoned organizers of color are truly struggling and scared for the future, this random white man just decided he was the leader we needed? Um, okay, but wait for it—it gets better. In addition to being the personality driving the boycott, despite reports that organizers of color and memes were the original voices advocating for this boycott, Schwarz also created a Go Fund Me to fund this initiative on an ongoing basis and was seeking to raise $100,000. On the organizations’ website, Schwarz says he needs the money for website management, marketing, and to start an official organization.

Apparently, Schwarz isn’t familiar with the concept of collaboration or fiscal sponsorship, both of which would be more suitable for a new project, especially in this political climate. Established grassroots organizations know that this regime will almost certainly be trying to revoke our tax status to shut us down. Also, given the energy of the moment, almost everything he is listing is something that many would gladly donate or offer well below cost. My long-term designer has worked on both my organization’s site and the BGIM site for years and often offers social justice groups a deep discount, sometimes doing a lot of work for free.

Lest you are new to my writing, I have been the executive director of a small grassroots organization for 11 years now. I have 25+ years of non-profit experience and for those who like credentials, I have a master’s degree in management with a concentration in nonprofit management. Oh, and my organization serves as the fiscal sponsor for projects in Maine and Massachusetts. So no, I am not just another crank with a half-baked opinion on the internet. The running and launching of non-profits is within my wheelhouse and was part of my life even before my anti-racism work.

So, watching today’s events was just mildly annoying, until I read an article The New York Times dropped that delved more into Schwarz’s background.

Oh, he is a formerly registered sex offender. Apparently in the early 2000s, he pled guilty to disseminating voyeuristic materials. He was accused of photographing an unconscious 18-year-old young woman’s breast and texting the image to her cellphone. The teenager said she was at Schwarz’s home, where he offered her pudding. She said took a few bites but thought it tasted weird, so she stopped eating it. Oh, he was 39 at the time. Schwarz spoke with the Times and addressed the issue on his IG account and said it was all basically bullshit.

Look, people are free to do what they choose as far as actions, but having a nationwide action that attracted national coverage spearheaded by a man with a questionable past and who is raising large sums of money for questionable goals is not a good look. Especially at a time when long-standing legitimate organizations that can mobilize and organize are struggling to survive, and when it is common for Black and brown activists to never meet their goals with crowdfunding campaigns.

It is also not helped by the fact that earlier this week, a crowdfunding campaign was launched for the Idaho woman, Dr. Teresa Borrenpohl, who was carried out of a Republican town hall meeting recently. The campaign for Borrenpohl has reached $325,580, which is well over the stated goal of $30,000. This fund is to help her retain a skilled lawyer. Um, I am pretty sure that given the moment and the gravity of the circumstances, there are plenty of lawyers who would take this case for a lot less than $300,000. I’m just saying.

Friends, we are all freaking the fuck out but throwing money around willy nilly and making heroes out of everyone who even attempts to resist isn’t smart. In a week, the money thrown at these two individuals could have been a hell of a start for a mutual aid fund to help the most impacted, or to fund some serious movement work. At my organization, a hundred grand would allow me to give my beleaguered staff much-needed raises and to bring on a third organizer so we can cover more terrain in our work. Folks like my colleague and friend, Leslie Mac—who has organized across the country—could inject serous energy on the ground level with money like that. Instead, she is sidelined now because cash for organizers of color with proven integrity and a track record has dried up like the Sahara Desert.

I have encountered several white people online today who have balked at the criticism over Schwarz, saying that his creating awareness was good enough. Really? Do you hear yourselves? Because I hear a racial double standard, and people are unwilling to push beyond their normal comfort zones.

Fascism is here, baby. It’s no longer encroaching. It’s here. Time is running out before we will never be able to get back any parts of our country, and people think raising awareness is good enough even if the guy behind it has a background better suited for a role in the Trump regime? Woo-woo? Check. Sexual predator? Check. We can do better than this. Let today’s boycott be the start of reducing your consumption and let’s plan to do more—because our futures depend on it—but understand that the integrity of anyone leading also matters. Otherwise, you’re just getting played.

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