In the latest grassroots uprising against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement tactics, a consumer boycott is urging consumers to resist top technology companies.
Launched by New York University marketing professor Scott Galloway, “Resist and Unsubscribe” calls on consumers to boycott 10 companies − Amazon, Apple, Google, Facebook owner Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Netflix, Paramount+, Uber, and X − during February.
“The Trump administration doesn’t respond to outrage,” Galloway, a frequent critic of Big Tech, said in a video promoting the boycott. “It responds to economic signals.”
He called on consumers “to carry out an economic strike the tech CEOs can’t ignore” by unsubscribing from services offered by these companies, such as Amazon Prime and YouTube, deleting accounts on platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp, and not buying Apple products during February.
Aggressive immigration enforcement and two deadly shootings have sparked resistance inside technology companies, too, as workers revolt over their industry’s powerful leaders currying favor with the administration.
Hundreds of tech workers have signed a public petition urging their employers — from Amazon to Google — to press President Donald Trump on the fatal shootings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis. While some have openly criticized the killings, most leaders of the top technology firms have remained quiet.
Apple CEO Tim Cook, who came under fire for attending a White House screening of a documentary about first lady Melania Trump on the evening of Pretti’s death, told employees in late January that he discussed the matter with the president.
“I had a good conversation with the president this week where I shared my views, and I appreciate his openness to engaging on issues that matter to us all,” Cook wrote to employees in an internal memo.
Galloway has his work cut out for him if he wants to take a serious bite out of national sales, even for just a month. Research consistently shows that consumer-led boycotts are difficult to sustain, and shopping habits are hard to break.
Most boycotts don’t make much of a dent, but some do break through.
A pressure campaign accusing Cracker Barrel of bowing to “wokeness” and distancing itself from its country roots and conservative values forced the company to scrap plans to spruce up its vintage logo of an overalls-clad old timer leaning against a barrel. Walmart, Ford, Harley-Davidson, and Tractor Supply also rolled back their diversity,equity, and inclusion efforts amid consumer pressure.
Target got squeezed from both ends of the political spectrum. In 2024, the Minneapolis-based retail giant scaled back its Pride collection and did not carry it in all stores. Last year, a national boycott over the company’s DEI retreat hurt sales.
And a study of the Tesla boycott suggested that billionaire and former Trump DOGE chief Elon Musk’s “polarizing and partisan” political activities alienated the electric car maker’s customer base and cost over 1 million in U.S. car sales from October 2022 to April 2025.
Galloway declined to provide data on how many people have pledged to participate in the February boycott.
One person planning to take part is Gabe da Silveira, a senior engineering manager at Airbnb in the San Francisco Bay Area, who was visiting family in Minneapolis when Pretti was killed.
After witnessing the candlelight vigils in freezing temperatures while Cook and other tech CEOs attended the private screening of “Melania,” he overcame his reluctance to bring politics into the workplace.
“What’s going on now with ICE activity in Minneapolis is not a partisan issue. It’s not even an immigration enforcement issue,” he wrote in a LinkedIn post. “What we’re seeing is a blatantly unconstitutional invasion designed to suppress dissent through fear and intimidation.”
Da Silveira added: “Since these tech leaders have not demonstrated the courage to do what must be done, it is up to us, the tech workers and citizens of all stripes to, step up for the American values that truly make us great.”