Dylan Mulvaney, a popular 26-year-old social media influencer with over 10 million TikTok followers, shares her gender transition journey and engages her fans with the viral series ‘Days of Girlhood,’ offering daily insights into womanhood.
However, Mulvaney faced significant backlash following announcing a collaboration with Bud Light.
CNN covers the controversy surrounding Dylan Mulvaney’s partnership with Bud Light.
In April of this year, the influencer collaborated with Bud Light to promote the college basketball tournament March Madness – where customers had the opportunity to win up to $15,000.
Rock star Kid Rock recorded himself shooting cases of Bud Light before declaring that he was boycotting the beer.
She unveiled the partnership in an Instagram video while dressed as the late actress Audrey Hepburn.
However, the announcement faced criticism from news organizations and celebrities.
After the announcement, the Washington Post reported on how some outlets frequently mentioned Mulvaney in ‘disregarding and transphobic terms’.
Despite receiving a lot of online hate, the TikTok star claimed that the brand never reached out to her during this difficult period.
Addressing her 1.8 million followers on Instagram – captioned ‘Trans people like beer too’ –, she explains: “I was waiting for the brand to reach out to me, but they never did. I’ve been afraid to leave my house.
“I’ve faced public ridicule, been followed, and experienced a loneliness that I wouldn’t wish upon anyone.
“I’m sharing this not because I seek pity, but because if this is my experience from a privileged perspective, then know that it is much worse for other trans individuals.
“For a company to hire a trans person and then not publicly support them is worse than not hiring a trans person at all.”
Bud Light released a statement on the same day as Mulvaney’s post.
Anheuser-Busch – the parent company of Bud Light – informed The Daily Beast that they remain ‘committed to the programs and partnerships we have established over many years with organizations in various communities, including those in the LGBTQ+ community’.
However, the brand never explicitly refers to Mulvaney by name.
The statement goes on to say: “The privacy and safety of our employees and partners is always our foremost concern.
“As we progress, we will concentrate on our core strength of brewing exceptional beer for all and cementing our position in moments that hold significance for our consumers.”
