It was criticized. Jokes on late night TV, opinion columns, water cooler. If Twitter was a thing back then, it would have been memed hard. I think you answered

It was criticized. Jokes on late night TV, opinion columns, water cooler. If Twitter was a thing back then, it would have been memed hard. I think you answered your own question. If it’s a fairly meaningless protest, why should the counterprotest be meaningful at all?