My recently engaged queer friend in San Francisco recently tried to order custom M&M candies from their website to say "Gay Family." He was shocked to recieve this e-mail response, rejecting his order because it did not support the "family-nature of our brand":
Dear [Friend's Name],
Thank you for your interest in personalized MY M&M'S® Chocolate Candies.
We support the family-nature of our brand and therefore sometimes cannot accept orders based upon the requested customization regardless of the intended meaning. Unfortunately, while we are certain your message was submitted with the best of intentions, we must adhere to the strict guidelines posted on our website.
Please contact our call center at 1.888.696.6788 from 8:30 AM to 9:00 PM EST Monday through Friday to discuss with one of our specialists some alternative messages for your customization as we cannot print your originally requested text. We are eager to work with you to find a resolution. A response is needed within two (2) business days; otherwise, we would need to cancel.
Sincerely,
Your friends at MYM&M'S®\Kandy"
Fuck M&M's and their parent company, Mars. Boycott their asses.
How exactly does "Gay Family" not support the "family-nature" of their brand? Outrageous! Nothing on their official list of "Do's and Don'ts" indicates this would be a problem. Of the four listed do-not's, it seems that "Gay Family" must fall under the category of "Obscenity":
Please don't use objectionable words and phrases. No obscenities. We don't want to leave a bad taste in their mouth.
Custom printed MY M&M's are for personal use only. No business names, product names, celebrity names, specific sports teams, major events, landmarks, and names of schools or institutions.
To avoid any confusion and keep everyone safe we will not print any reference to drugs or prescription items, especially those that are in pill or capsule form.
We take great pride in the history of M&M's products, so the only single letter we print on our candy is the letter M.
It hurts when one's mode of familial organisation is not respected by influential institutions, does it not?
I wonder whether M&Ms would accept "Single parent family" or "Long-term cohabiting couple as family", or "Single person household as family".
In fact, Trevor, I wonder whether, given your support for the institution of marriage, *you* would give public recognition to any of these non-conventional modes of family organisation - for the institution of marriage certainly exists to remove public recognition from them... The following publication looks interesting on this point: http://www.beyondstraightandgaymarriage.com/
That is truly fucked up, especially given the fact Mars, the company that produces also makes Skittles. So does this mean, that they are going to have to change Skittles' slogan of "Taste the Rainbow" because it 'does not meet the family-nature of our brand' or remove the rainbow image from the product altogether because rainbows are associated with "gay", which they find offensive?
I could understand not printing profanity and sexually explicit messages, but how is "gay family" offensive? Well, I guess the good thing is candy such as M&M's and Skittles are loaded with sugar and calories so boycotting the company could be beneficial in more ways than one.