Marks and Spencer faced calls from anti-racist campaign groups at their recent Wembley Stadium AGM to stop advertising in the Daily Mail.
Shareholders were handed copies of an open letter by protesters as they went in to the meeting. Company Directors also heard directly from shareholders inside the meeting. A mobile billboard drove to various London M&S stores emblazoned with a message urging M&S to stop supporting hate and racism through the Daily Mail.
The open letter says:
“M&S’s financial support for the Daily Mail is actively contributing to the growing tide of harassment and violence that migrants (including asylum seekers and refugees), Muslims and people of colour are facing on the streets of the UK.”
Aisha Dodwell, a campaigner from Global Justice Now says: “M&S proudly proclaims its ethical business credentials and presents itself as a socially responsible company so why are they associating themselves with newspapers that promote hate?”
Sondhya Gupta, campaigner at SumOfUs adds: “Papers like the Daily Mail publish hate-filled and misinformed pieces that cause real harm to real people.”