In October 2025, it was brought to my attention that many people have started switching from Spotify to other music streaming services. I was curious, so I scoured the internet to find out why. Basically, Spotify has been running ads about ICE recruitment. As a Spotify Premium user myself, I had no clue that Spotify had been allowing these types of ads on its app. Since then, I have been coordinating with my partner to switch to a different streaming service.
Here’s the thing – Spotify isn’t the only place that ICE ads are being posted. YouTube, Pandora, Hulu, HBO, Instagram, and Facebook have ALL been posting ICE ads since as early as April 2025. So why am I only hearing about people boycotting Spotify?
Boycotting companies for various reasons has become more talked about on social media. Target is being boycotted due to its rollback on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Starbucks is being boycotted because of its anti-union stance and opinions on the Israel-Palestine conflict. Chick-fil-A is being boycotted because it donates to anti-LBGTQ+ organizations. I’ve heard all about these. And yet, at the same time, I know plenty of people who still shop with these companies. My favorite comment I’ve heard regarding why some of my LGBTQ+ friends still purchase food at Chick-fil-A is, “their chicken is just too good to give up.” Honestly? I kind of don’t care either.
I don’t want to give off the wrong idea – I do care a lot about these initiatives and I do boycott quite a few companies due to my disagreeing with their policies or actions – but I also cannot afford to put in the effort of staying up to date with everything and boycott things that would actively make life inconvenient.
Take Amazon, for example. We, as a student organization are required to use BuyIt to purchase items for our clubs. Amazon is one of the biggest companies that we purchase from. Avoiding Amazon in this context would make purchasing for our organizations significantly harder.
Convenience is a big reason why boycotts fail. It is also a reason why a lot of us aren’t boycotting to begin with. If something is right there, it is significantly more tempting than something we never see in our day-to-day life. Boycotting Chick-fil-A was extremely easy for me because the restaurant was never in a location close to me. Since I’ve never eaten their food, I have no clue what I’m even missing out on. I am also able to just cook food at home, something that isn’t available to everyone, but is still underutilized by many. I rarely go to fast food restaurants in general simply because the food doesn’t interest me, and it’s out of my budget to splurge on eating out. On the other hand, if I need something right away for school that isn’t available within public transit distances, I will be asking my school friend to Amazon Prime me the materials. I do not always have the foresight to predict what school supplies I’m going to need, especially back in 2020 and 2021 when there was a wood shortage and my architecture studio emailed everyone telling us that we needed wood dowels for the next day while the nearest Blick and the former Illinois Institute of Technology bookstore were shut down permanently (bookstore, how I miss you so).
There is always something to consider: boycotting can only be done when it is accessible and equitable. Not everyone is able to boycott a company when it’s the only grocery store near them for miles. We can’t all get rid of the only location that sells our medications or takes our health insurance. Some people can only afford to buy fast food. You can not shame those who are unable to boycott. Not everyone has money, not everyone is able-bodied, and not everyone can do the same things that you can.
At the same time, I also believe that there are plenty of things that can be given up with little to no repercussions. I’m sorry, but I don’t think you NEED that latte from Starbucks when you could go to the local cafe down the street and buy it for cheaper (of course, only if you are able). I think there are plenty of other restaurants besides Chick-fil-A that make delicious chicken. Better yet, finances permitting, you could cook these things at home for half the price of what they cost in a restaurant. I know that I opt to buy things in local stores or in person, or I will wait the seven to ten business days to receive my items, when time permits.
I get it, it’s hard to break habits regarding where you go for food or clothes. It is especially hard to break the habit of online shopping when everything can be delivered in a few days. I can admit that it’s hard to give up the convenience of popping by a fast-food place when you’re downtown and craving a snack. But it is doable. Not for everyone, but it can be done.
While it may be difficult to give up so many things at once, I’d encourage you to consider participating gradually and effectively. An example of this is the “mass blackout” planned for Black Friday and Cyber Monday (November 28 and December 1), where people have been discussing boycotting all shopping on these days to protest the Trump administration and economic inequality. Simply not shopping on two of the largest purchasing days of the year could genuinely create a massive impact. This honestly could be really easy for us broke college students, as none of us really have the disposable income to splurge on anything to begin with (I’m joking, but also not really). We’ve seen successful boycotts that have hit companies hard economically. It is possible. It just means we have to work together to see it through.
Accessibility is key, and sometimes it will take work to break those habits that cause us to rely so heavily on what we’re used to. So, no, I don’t think I will be giving up YouTube due to many of my favorite creators relying on it for their income, but I sure as hell will be finding a new music streaming service.