For years American companies were forbidden to do business in the politically volatile state of Israel, and Coca-Cola were fine with that since plans to build a plant in the country were blocked by the government in 1948. Then there was a big to-do when an Egyptian Coca-Cola plant said they'd never open a factory in the country, prompting accusations that the company was anti-Semitic. In fact during passover Coke sell kosher versions of their products, substituting corn syrup for sugar instead in areas with a substantial Jewish population, marked with yellow caps on the bottles.
5. And Martin Luther King Called For A Boycott Too
The civil rights leader's final speech is mainly remembered for the eerie prescience it seemed to show over his impending assassination, but the so-called "I've Been to the Mountaintop" talk delivered on April 3, 1968 also saw Martin Luther King, Jr calling for boycott of "white goods" like Coca-Cola as a non-violent means of protesting against racist businesses. Bizarrely this was after the company threatened to leave King's native Atlanta when plans to celebrate his Nobel Peace Prize win were opposed by big ole' racists.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
