‘Corporate Allyship’ Changes Absolutely Nothing
From meditation app Calm donating to mental health on behalf of Naomi Osaka to brands flying rainbow flags for pride month, corporations will seize any opportunity for cheap publicity
Last week, number one tennis player Naomi Osaka refused to attend a post-match press conference. She released a statement on Twitter explaining that she wouldn’t continue to put her mental health at risk to satisfy the press. She was fined $15,000.
In the furor surrounding both sides, she then posted another message to say she was withdrawing from the French Open altogether.
People had thoughts. There were supporters who said mental health should come above some boring post-match interview that nobody really cares about. There were those who said it was simply part of the job to be harangued by reporters after a loss. (You can probably tell which side I’m on.)
And then, weirdly, brands also had thoughts.
Nearly all the brands who sponsor Osaka as well as some totally unrelated ones weighed in on her side, releasing statements to show their support. I’m talking Mastercard, Nike, TAG Heuer, Nissin Foods, Nissan, All Nippon Airways, Workday, and Sweetgreen. The…
