DALLAS (NEXSTAR) — Clothing company Patagonia has gone viral on social media for clothing tags that read “vote the a**holes out.” And before you think it’s an online prank, the company confirms the tags are the real deal.
A company spokesperson told Upworthy the tags are related to Patagonia’s ongoing effort to stand up to what it labels “climate deniers.”
“They were added to our 2020 Men’s and Women’s Regenerative Organic Stand-Up Shorts because we have been standing up to climate deniers for almost as long as we’ve been making those shorts,” Patagonia spokeswoman Corley Kenna said.
This isn’t Patagonia’s first brush into the issue of climate change. Upworthy reports company CEO Yvon Chouinard decided to donate all profits from its 2016 Black Friday sales to non-profits that work towards a better environment.
“Yvon has been saying ‘vote the assholes out’ for several years and it refers to politicians from any party who deny or disregard the climate crisis and ignore science, not because they aren’t aware of it, but because their pockets are lined with money from oil and gas interests,” added Kenna.
Patagonia was also involved in the creation of Time to Vote, a corporate voting initiative formed ahead of the 2018 election. The goal of the group is to get companies to commit to work schedules that allow employees time to vote.
A little over 400 companies participated two years ago; Time to Vote says 700 have joined so far this year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
