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In a new post on X, social media influencer Robbie Starbuck suggested that Harley-Davidson's motorcycle brand and business model is under “attack” from within.
He quoted the company's CEO, Jochen Zeitz, who has been accused of getting woke while overseeing the iconic brand. The German-born Zeitz took over as CEO in May 2020.
“Just as someone once called me the 'sustainable Taliban,' imagine standing in front of a group of luxury brand CEOs who now consider you the 'sustainable Taliban,'” Zeitz said in a speech at the Zermatt Summit in Switzerland in 2020, referring to his time serving on the boards of Gucci, Puma and Keyring, the parent company of Stella McCartney.
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Minutes later, during the same speech, Zeitz again mentioned terrorist organizations, as seen in a video shared by Starbuck this week.
“Of course, when you think of Harley, you think of the sound and smell of Harley-Davidson,” Zeitz told attendees at a chic conference in Switzerland.
A red, white and blue Harley Davidson motorcycle in Chicago, Illinois. (Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
“So I've become Taliban again in a sustainable way,” Zeitz says in the video, smiling and pacing back and forth on stage while referring to a Harley-Davidson.
“I decided to share and set up a sustainability committee, of which I still serve as chair.”
Starbuck, as well as many of his social media followers and longtime Harley-Davidson fans, were shocked by the CEO's flippant comparison to a terrorist group that is spilling American blood.
Harley-Davidson accused of 'woke' by Sturgis bikers: 'It's heartbreaking'
“I think it's really gross,” motorcycle media mogul James “Hollywood” Masecari told Fox News Digital upon hearing the comparison.
The Taliban is a globally reviled terrorist organization that rules Afghanistan and provided a base for Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida terrorist organization both before and after they planned the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.
“I have become Taliban again in a sustainable way.”
The attack killed about 3,000 people and wounded more than 6,000, according to the U.S. State Department. About 2,500 U.S. troops were killed in the ensuing war trying to root out the Taliban.
“I wouldn't care if Harley went bankrupt by now,” Mr. Masecari, founder of Insane Throttle and author of four books, said in an interview last week about the “woke” direction Harley-Davidson has taken under Mr. Zeitz.
Former outlaw biker James “Hollywood” Masecari is the author of four books about motorcycle gangs and the host of the “Motorcycle Madhouse” podcast. (James “Hollywood” Masecari)
The Biden-Harris administration abruptly withdrew from Afghanistan in August 2021, leaving billions of dollars' worth of American military equipment in the hands of the Taliban.
The government also abandoned American soldiers.
On August 26, 2021, a suicide bombing occurred during a mass evacuation of U.S. troops at Kabul airport, killing 183 people, including 13 U.S. soldiers.
“These are people who purposefully and intentionally killed Americans.”
Three years after the chaotic withdrawal, the Taliban celebrated this week by displaying U.S. military equipment on the streets of Kabul, Fox News Digital reported Wednesday.
“When I hear 'Taliban' the first thing that comes to mind is the aggressive and horrific things they've done,” said Starbuck, who has led a social media effort to highlight Harley-Davidson's shift toward controversial far-left management styles.
Harley-Davidson CEO Jochen Zeitz speaks in Berlin, Germany, when he was CEO of Puma AG. (Michel Tantoussi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
He added, “The Taliban raped women. They killed people mercilessly. They killed Americans deliberately and purposefully. They fundamentally hate our country. So to compare yourself to them is already, on the surface, insanity.”
A Harley-Davidson spokesperson responded to Fox News Digital in a statement:
“Mr. Zeitz's comments make it clear that he has never accepted such an assessment, which is borne out by his track record of commitment to people, planet and profit, and his life's work,” the company said.
“It's heartbreaking.”
Some longtime Harley-Davidson fans argue that Zeitz's leadership has coincided with a decline in the brand's image, a brand once synonymous with American strength, power and the freedom of the open road.
Meet the American who founded the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally: “Bringing the Brotherhood of Motorcycling”
“They killed Harley. It breaks my heart,” Vinnie Terranova, owner of Pappy's Vintage Cycles in Sturgis, South Dakota, told Fox News Digital in a recent interview about CEO leadership.
Terranova, who ran Rocky Mountain Harley-Davidson in Colorado for more than 40 years and became a prominent figure in the motorcycle industry, said the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally ended two days early for Harley-Davidson.
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“They took the tents down on Saturday and everything was gone – everything,” he said.
“It's been empty all week. No one came.”
The rally officially ended on Monday.
In the same speech as Starbuck, Zeitz cited his work as a leader of the so-called “B Team,” which he co-chairs with Richard Branson and other business and world leaders.
A Harley-Davidson logo is displayed near a Harley-Davidson store in Krakow, Poland on January 24, 2024. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“We are challenging traditional capitalism and redefining it,” Zeitz said.
Some longtime Harley-Davidson devoted riders believe the redefined Harley has become ruthless.
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“The biggest issue isn't just the 'woke' nonsense,” longtime Harley rider Johnny “Horseshoe” Henning told Fox News Digital in a phone interview from Sturgis.
“The biggest problem is they've lost their humanity. That's the best way to put it.”
Starbuck, meanwhile, said the comparison between Zeitz and the Taliban makes that clear.
“I've become the Taliban,” Harley-Davidson CEO Jochen Zeitz said in a 2020 speech discussing sustainability efforts. Now, some riders say the brand has become less human under his stewardship. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times, Tim Boyle/Getty Images, Michelle Tantoussi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“If you dig deeper into the comparison, it really shows that the Taliban are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their goals,” the influencer said.
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“Anything is fine.
“The Taliban will do anything to achieve their goals,” he stressed.
