MANHATTAN — Ben & Jerry's has a taste for protest.
The Vermont ice cream purveyors have tossed their weight behind the Occupy Wall Street movement in a high-profile boost for the anti-Wall Street demonstration group.
"We, the Ben & Jerry’s Board of Directors, compelled by our personal convictions and our Company’s mission and values, wish to express our deepest admiration to all of you who have initiated the non-violent Occupy Wall Street Movement and to those around the country who have joined in solidarity," reads a message on Ben & Jerry's website.
The message features a graphic of the company's signature cow holding an "Occupy" sign with a city skyline in the background.
The company's board agreed with a number of points raised by the protesters, saying that the "inequity that exists between classes in our country is simply immoral."
They also cited the "unemployment crisis," the fact that "many workers who have jobs have to work 2 or 3 of them just to scrape by," student indebtedness and corporate political spending.
"We know that the media will either ignore you or frame the issue as to who may be getting pepper sprayed rather than addressing the despair and hardships borne by so many, or accurately conveying what this movement is about," the site reads.
Occupy Wall Street has entered its fourth week camped out in Zuccotti Park, across the street from the World Trade Center.
On Saturday, the group marched to Washington Square Park where it held a brief and peaceful rally.
That demonstration stood in stark contrast to a rally this past Wednesday, after which more than two dozen protesters were arrested when they clashed with cops.
The Saturday before that, more than 700 people were arrested when the group marched onto the roadway of the Brooklyn Bridge.
