The McDonald’s Global Empire Is Tearing Itself Apart Over Israel-Palestine
Franchises across the Muslim world have pledged to send aid to Gaza after an Israel franchise promised to feed IDF soldiers.
In the wake of the war between Israel and Hamas, McDonald’s franchises in Israel and across the Middle East have rushed to issue statements, donate money, and clarify their particular politics to patrons. McDonald’s was once held up as an example of the power of globalization and American soft power in particular—a sign that stability had come to a country. But globalization is a funny thing, and McDonald’s today is a many-tentacled entity that morphs to fit the politics of the moment and the regions that franchises operate in.
