HGTV viewers beg network to stop doing business with Wayfair: 'They are profiting from children in cages'

Raechal Shewfelt
·Editor, Yahoo Entertainment
Updated
HGTV stars David Bromstad, of "My Lottery Dream Home," Christina Anstead of "Christina on the Coast," Alison Victoria of "Windy City Rehab" and Jonathan Knight of "Farmhouse Fixer" pose for a photo on Feb. 12 in Pasadena, California. (Photo: Corey Nickols/Getty Images)
HGTV stars David Bromstad, of My Lottery Dream Home, Christina Anstead of Christina on the Coast, Alison Victoria of Windy City Rehab and Jonathan Knight of Farmhouse Fixer pose for a photo on Feb. 12 in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo: Corey Nickols/Getty Images)

HGTV fans are paying close attention to the employee walkout of home goods retailer Wayfair that took place Wednesday at the company’s Boston headquarters.

Wayfair employees learned last week that the company planned to fulfill a $200,000 order for bedroom furniture made by government contractor, BCFS, that’s responsible for managing facilities that detain migrant children at the southern border of the United States. A group of employees subsequently wrote a letter to company leaders protesting the decision that more than 500 workers signed. They asked that the company stop doing business with BCFS and create a code of ethics that aligns with employee values. When Wayfair executives disagreed, the employees planned the walkout. CNN correspondent Cristina Alesci reported Wednesday that the company would soon announce plans to donate profits from the sale, but the walkout went on as scheduled.

Online, fans of Flip or Flop, House Hunters and other HGTV favorites called for the network to dump Wayfair, too. They demanded that they keep its ads off the airwaves and end its collaborations with the brand, which its teamed with for sweepstakes and design projects.

Viewers pleaded with HGTV to “please stop doing business with this company.” If not, some viewers said, they would stop watching.

They told the network, “you are better than this” and referred to any profits made from a relationship with Wayfair as “#bloodmoney.”

In a statement, HGTV told Yahoo Entertainment, “We don’t attempt to influence or comment on our sponsors’ business decisions.”

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