Announcing his newest ice cream flavor, Ben Cohen, cofounder of Ben & Jerry’s proclaimed, “We all need to stand up to march to protest, because all of America is Minneapolis now.”
“The flavor I’m making today is called ‘The Maxi Hearts of Minneapolis,’” Cohen stated in a video. “Amidst all the horror and sadness, I’m encouraged by the spirit of Minneapolis. Finally, a community that’s standing up and putting their bodies on the line for compassion and decency and justice.”
The base of the ice cream blends coconut and passion fruit, flavors Cohen says are favorites of the immigrant community. The mix-in “chunks” include three types of hearts: salted caramel, chocolate, and red. Cohen explains that the caramel hearts “represent the tears that we cry for Renee and Alex, and the sweat of the hard work that we’ll be doing for justice in their memory.” The chocolate hearts “represent the love with which we will do that work,” and the red hearts are intended to symbolize “the hearts of people all over our country going out to the family and friends of Renee and Alex.”
Printed on the ice cream container is the message: “This flavor is a tribute to the grit and the spirit of the people of Minneapolis, who are leading with their hearts and putting their bodies on the line for justice and compassion. We especially honor the lives of Renee and Alex who were murdered by the masked, militarized, heavily armed thugs of ICE.”
Cohen used the announcement to declare, “ICE is a masked, lawless rogue paramilitary force that’s blatantly violating the Constitution and trampling on our rights as US citizens. It must be defunded and disbanded.”
Drawing a line between his activism and the corporate brand, Cohen noted: “This is not a Ben and Jerry’s flavor. It’s a Ben’s Best flavor, because Ben and Jerry’s is also under a form of occupation, and they’re not going to say it, so I will.”
Previous politically themed flavors tied to either Ben Cohen directly or the Ben & Jerry’s brand have included “Justice ReMix’d” supporting prison reform, “Change Is Brewing” backing Rep. Cori Bush’s policing bill, “Kamala’s Coconut Jubilee” promoted in a get-out-the-vote campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris, and “Bernie’s Back,” a cinnamon-and-chocolate tribute to Bernie Sanders created by Cohen as a limited-edition release.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield co‑founded Ben & Jerry’s and sold the company to Unilever in 2000 under a unique governance agreement intended to preserve its social mission. In 2025, Greenfield publicly left the brand, citing Unilever’s alleged silencing of its values and independence. That same year, Cohen attempted to repurchase the company, but Unilever declined to sell. The company has since spun off its ice cream assets into a new, standalone entity called the Magnum Ice Cream Company.
The flavor Maxi Hearts of Minneapolis references two recent lethal incidents. Renee Good was shot on January 7 after allegedly accelerating her vehicle toward an ICE agent during an enforcement operation in Minneapolis. Federal authorities have stated the vehicle was used as a weapon, while her partner, Becca Good, is reportedly under investigation for potentially impeding federal officers. Video footage shows Becca challenging agents before the shots were fired, with some suggesting she encouraged Renee to “drive,” though others dispute the clarity of her words.
Alex Pretti was killed by federal agents on January 24 in a separate incident. Days earlier, he was recorded on video yelling profanities at agents, calling them “trash,” and daring them to assault him. Federal immigration officers had reportedly documented information about Pretti before the shooting. He brought a firearm with him on January 24, the day he was fatally shot.
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