Many small, independent brands like Simris rely on Facebook and Instagram to reach out to people. Unfortunately, Facebook (who also owns Instagram) has refused to intervene against the hate-mongering, promotion of violence and disinformation that enables and solidifies racism and injustice in the first place. Facebook makes its money from paid advertising. As one of the many brands who pay for ads on these platforms, we felt that we were, in essence, funding hate with our outreach budget. This is why, as of June 2nd, 2020, Simris stopped all paid advertising on Facebook and Instagram. Our decision was quoted in major news publications such as The New York Times, The Telegraph, and the Washington Post, and also dedicated business media such as Triple Pundit, Sustainable Brands, Adweek and The Information. You can find the links to our original statement at the end of this post.