The Bizarre Complaint Against The Green M&M, Explained

Editors Note: A previous version of this article reported that America First Legal filed a lawsuit. It has been corrected to state that the organization requested an investigation.

In case you've missed it, M&M's has been in the news a lot lately. Just last year in 2022, M&M's made a few changes to its characters, most notably swapping out the green M&M's high-knee boots for sneakers.

Now here we are, a year later, with Stephen Miller and the right-wing America First Legal Foundation filing a complaint against Mars, the company that makes M&M's, on charges of discrimination and violations of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, according to Rolling Stone. America First Legal submitted a letter requesting an investigation into Mars' hiring practices, to be conducted by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Obviously, the organization's letter doesn't actually have anything to do with the green M&M's shoes, but some seem determined to use her as an example of companies being "too woke."

Anyway, according to the request, Miller and American First Legal believe that Mars is discriminating against potential employees by working to "achieve gender balance" and "increase racial minority representation." The statement further goes on to complain about how Mars wants to have a diverse workforce that "unlawfully [excludes] white Americans." 

While many of us can probably agree that the green M&M is only a scapegoat in this situation, America First Legal has nevertheless latched onto Mars as the perfect example of "woke companies" discriminating against white Americans. Mars' hiring and leadership policies allegedly favor women and minorities. Additionally, the organization cited Mars offering specific training and mentorship opportunities to women as discriminatory. 

In a statement to Fox Business, America First Legal claimed that the purpose of the investigation would be to "protect equal opportunity for all Americans." Prior to the organization's complaint, Mars' switching up its M&M's marketing campaign drew backlash from some conservative viewers. In particular, former Fox News host Tucker Carson called out the company, "Woke M&M's have returned." He particularly focused on the green M&M's new sneakers as "deeply unappealing," leaving him "totally turned off." He also had negative things to say about the purple M&M in the all-female packs as well. 

Representatives from Mars have shot back at the claims of discrimination. They wrote in a statement, "Mars is an equal opportunity employer – we do not engage in discriminatory employment practices. Inclusion and diversity have long been priorities for us, and we use lawful means to pursue our inclusion and diversity objectives."