and small businesses opposed the ban. Some filed briefs to support overturning the ban. They claimed it was discriminatory paternalistic and ineffective according to the New York Times. The newspaper investigated the relationship between the civil rights and advocacy groups and the soft drink industry. It reported that groups including the National Hispana Leadership Institute the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People the National Puerto Rican Coalition and the National Hispanic Medical Association had benefited from millions of dollars given by the soft drink industry to sponsor conferences scholarships and financial literacy classes.
