Transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney says they felt abandoned by Bud Light after facing “more bullying and transphobia than I could have ever imagined” over their partnership with the beer giant.
In a video posted Thursday to Instagram and TikTok, Mulvaney said they “was waiting for the brand to reach out to me. But they never did.” Mulvaney said they should have spoken out sooner but was afraid and hoped things would get better — but they didn’t.
“For months now, I’ve been scared to leave my house,” Mulvaney said. “I have been ridiculed in public. I’ve been followed, and I have felt a loneliness that I wouldn’t wish on anyone.”
Anheuser-Busch didn’t directly respond to Mulvaney in a statement the company released Friday. But it said it remains “committed to the programs and partnerships we have forged over decades with organizations across a number of communities, including those in the LGBTQ+ community.”
A deluge of criticism and hate erupted soon after Mulvaney cracked open a Bud Light in an Instagram video on April 1 as part of a promotional contest for the beer brand. Mulvaney showed off a can emblazoned with their face that Bud Light sent to them — one of many corporate freebies they get and share with their millions of followers.