A national movement on Friday called for an economic boycott.
The idea was to encourage people not to shop or put gas in their cars as a show of economic force. The protest was carried out in response to the dismantling of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies in the federal government and major national store chains as well as the threat of mass deportations.
Juan Jose Martinez said he supports the national economic blackout, but he was at Milpitas Town Center on Friday because he had to work.
"If you don’t like something, use your wallet to let them know," he said.
One shopper who wished to remain anonymous said he agrees with the elimination of DEI efforts.
"Whatever we’ve been enforcing so far was just totally wrong and nuts," he said.
Supporters of the boycott said that being 20% of the national population, Latinos have a chance to send a strong message with their $3.7 trillion buying power.
"Even if half were to make an impact, it would really make a substantial difference," Latino Freeze founder Michael Galvez said.
Galvez's call is for a prolonged boycott of large national stores that eliminated DEI programs.
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"There's parts of the population that have lost their appetite," he said. "I think that's the key term. They've lost their appetite for supporting a specific company who has rolled back diversity, equity and inclusion."
Dr. Caroline Chen at San Jose State University’s business school said an ongoing boycott is key if proponents want to send a message to the major retailers. She also said this economic boycott is a different kind of protest.
"We’re not going to stand in front of stores with picket signs," she said. "We’re not going to do anything like that. But we're going to pocket book protest. We’re going to use our pocket books, our wallets, our bank accounts, whatever it is to protest."
She said time will tell how successful the economic boycott ends up being.
