Patagonia has been very openly in opposition to every terrible move made by the current Republican administration. They have dedicated the ill-gotten Republican tax-cut money to climate change grassroots activism. They have launched lawsuits against the Trump administration and its move to take away federal land from the people and give it to private industry.
On Tuesday, photos went viral across the internet, purporting to show a new label on a Patagonia item of clothing. The new tag, when flipped over, read “VOTE THE ASSHOLES OUT.” Was this real? Was this something new, or old? There were many questions, but now there are answers.
According to Patagonia the tag is indeed real, taking inspiration from the end of a company letter by Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, from April of 2020, in celebration of Earth Day, Chouinard wrote “And vote the assholes out—all of those politicians who don't believe we should do anything about climate change.” The company says that the special voting message can be seen on their Road to Regenerative Stand Up® Shorts.
I don’t need the shorts to remind me to vote these assholes out, but I support its sentiment across the board.