When should CEOs speak out on politics?

Trump hastily dissolved two business advisory councils this week as chief executives began resigning over his remarks about an eruption of violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, sparked by a far-right rally around a Confederate monument. Among them, Intel, Merck, Under Armour, 3M, and the Campbell Soup Company.

The clash turned to horror when a white supremacist allegedly plowed his Dodge Challenger into a crowd of anti-Nazi protesters, killing a woman and injuring 19 people.

Making political statements can be perilous for companies, but sometimes it’s riskier not to take a stand, two experts in executive communications suggest.

Companies have a fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders, and that consideration plays into CEO’s political positions, says Rob Friedman, a communications consultant and former senior director of Global Executive Communications for Eli Lilly and Company. There’s a risk any time a corporation wades into politics, because it can be a lose-lose situation, Friedman adds.

That said, these days the fiduciary responsibility includes a commitment to diversity in an increasingly diverse country, Friedman says. That makes it more obvious that companies would take a stance in this case.