January 26, 2012
In Sarasota, one student's tragic sacrifice for farm labor justice 40 years ago inspires a new generation of student activists for Fair Food today...
Dozens of students, community members hold vigil in memory of Nan Freeman, New College student killed in 1972 farmworker protest, vow to "carry her torch onward" in struggle to bring Publix "onto the right side of history"
In a moving tribute to an 18-year old New College freshman, Nan Freeman, who was fatally struck by a farm truck hauling sugar cane during a farmworker protest in Belle Glade forty years ago yesterday, New College students and Sarasota human rights activists gathered last night to honor Nan's memory and to send a message to Florida's largest grocer, Publix, pledging to "recommit ourselves with greater tenacity and dedication than ever before" to the Campaign for Fair Food.
The student organizers of last night's vigil circulated a letter to Publix CEO Ed Crenshaw, which read, in part:
On this day, on the 40th anniversary of her death, we honor the legacy of Nan Freeman, a New College freshman who lost her life in the admirable struggle to secure more dignified work conditions for Florida farmworkers. Ms. Freeman, in the words of United Farm Workers (UFW) leader Cesar Chavez, "is Kadosha in the Hebrew tradition, 'a holy person' to be honored and remembered" and someone who "poured out her one life so that farmworkers everywhere might be more free"... read more |
"As New College students and members of the Sarasota community, we write to you to convey our tremendous disappointment with your company's refusal to partner with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) to advance human rights for Florida tomato pickers.The letter concludes:
"... Today, on the 40th anniversary of Ms. Freeman's martyrdom for the cause of farmworker justice, we recommit ourselves with greater tenacity and dedication than ever before, to carry her torch forward and do all we possibly can to create a more just, more humane agricultural industry, and that entails bringing your company, Florida's predominant grocer, onto the right side of history." |
You can see the full text of the letter here.
An excellent article on the vigil, "New College to honor student activist," can be found here, too.
New College students have been at the forefront of a growing Fair Food movement in the Sarasota area that is challenging the unquestioned dominance of Publix in that crucial Southwest Florida market. The students' dogged efforts to educate their fellow Sarasotans on the urgent need for farm labor reform and on Publix's role in holding back change have had a real impact on consumers in the area and are a model for student activists throughout the state of Florida.
There can be little doubt that if Nan Freeman were alive today, she would be proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with New College's new generation of farm labor activists in the battle for Fair Food. Her spirit was, beyond a doubt, present last night, and will continue to animate students for as long as it takes to win dignity, respect, and fair wages in the Florida fields where she gave her life forty years ago.
January 23, 2012
Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow, nor hail...
... will keep these Fair Food activists from
their appointed rounds!
Dispatches from the frozen northern front of the Battle for Fair Food have been coming in this week, from Ohio (above) --- where a member of Ohio Fair Food wrote this past Saturday, "75 Coalition for Immokalee supporters just marched on the south campus Krogers in Columbus demanding that Krogers meet with the CIW for a penny per pound!" -- to La Grange outside of Chicago (below), where Fair Food activists protested Trader Joe's refusal to sign an agreement with the CIW and collected petition signatures in support of the Campaign, catching the eye of the local media in the process:
And speaking of Trader Joe's, Rev. Sarah Halverson recently published this op-ed in Southern California's Daily Pilot, entitled, "Community Commentary: Trader Joe's should join the Campaign for Fair Food". It begins:
"People often forget that the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was killed in Memphis, Tenn., while he was standing in solidarity with sanitation workers as they sought justice in their workplace. I could think of no better way to honor his legacy than by celebrating his birthday continuing the struggle against injustice. I spent the weekend in Immokalee, Fla., with tomato farm workers. Like the sanitation workers of King's day, they held signs declaring, "I am a Man." Today's workers remind us "soy humano" — "I am human" — and thus deserve to be treated as such." read more |
Don't miss this hard-hitting piece, and check back soon for news of a major mobilization in the Campaign for Fair Food!
January 20, 2012
Premiering this week at the Sundance Festival:
"Payback," a new film by the award-winning Canadian documentary director Jennifer Baichwal, featuring an extensive segment on farm labor exploitation and the Campaign for Fair Food!
Adapting the 2008 best-seller "Payback" by author Margaret Atwood to film, Canadian documentary director Jennifer Baichwal and cinematographer Nick de Pencier are premiering their new film, by the same name, at the Sundance Festival this weekend. The Sundance program describes "Payback":
"Jennifer Baichwal’s brilliant documentaries exemplify the alignment of form with content as she imaginatively transposes other artists’ work into the film medium to explore and expand their narratives. In her latest such project, Baichwal undertakes the ambitious task of cinematizing PAYBACK, Margaret Atwood’s visionary book of essays about systems of wealth, justice, and reparation. Seemingly disparate forays into the worlds of migrant tomato pickers in Florida, feuding clans in Albania, victims of BP’s oil spill, and a repentant inmate all mix with insights from thinkers like theologian Karen Armstrong, ecologist William Rees, public critic Raj Patel, and Atwood herself. Integrating Atwood’s words with their outlooks, Baichwal’s luxurious pacing, arresting imagery, and astonishing juxtapositions stimulate provocative associations among ideas and realities. Both visceral and revelatory, PAYBACK plunges us deeply into reconsidering the roots of social inequity, what we value, and debt’s profound role as an organizing principle in our lives—one that shapes relationships, society, and the fate of the planet." read more |
The film includes an extensive segment on the plight of tomato pickers in Florida and on the Campaign for Fair Food as a means to address the societal debt owed to generations of farmworkers whose undervalued and exploited labor has fueled the wealth of the larger food industry for decades.
Many of us here at the CIW had the pleasure of working with Jennifer and Nick during their time filming in Florida. If there were ever two filmmakers who more richly deserve every success in their work than these two, we have yet to meet them. They are great artists, but, more than that, they are even better people. We wish them and the film the best of luck at Sundance, and look forward to seeing the film when it hits theaters this April 25th.
January 18, 2012
"Sum of Us" are getting tired of Trader Joe's
foot dragging on Fair Food!
Online petition calling on Trader Joe's to sign Fair Food agreement latest indication that patience with "ethical grocer" is growing short among concerned consumers...
Sum of Us, the "movement of consumers, workers and shareholders speaking with one voice to counterbalance the growing power of large corporations," has stepped into the ring in the battle to win Trader Joe's commitment to the Fair Food Program, and they've done so with a sharply-worded new online petition out today. Here's an excerpt:
January 16, 2012
HUGE new initiative promises to
"Move Mountains"!
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness:
only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate:
only love can do that."
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, "Strength to Love," 1963
Interfaith Action, the network of people of faith and religious institutions that partners with the CIW in the Campaign for Fair Food, has launched a pivotal new initiative designed to rally the power of prayer to move Publix from "isolation and hesitation... into communication and cooperation with the CIW." From the Interfaith Action website:
January 11, 2012
Trader Joe's set to open first Florida store...
on Immokalee Road!
This should be interesting...
On February 10, Trader Joe's will be opening its first store in Florida. Where? About 30 miles from Immokalee, on the road that connects Immokalee to Naples.
While this is surely a coincidence, it is one that cannot be ignored, and workers from Immokalee, together with their Southwest Florida allies, are planning a warm welcome for their newest neighbor.
January 9, 2012
Martin Sheen pens powerful letter to Trader Joe's CEO Dan Bane in "fervent support" of the Campaign for Fair Food!
Sheen: "Frankly it is both surprising and deeply disappointing that Trader Joe's has yet to make a binding commitment to support the CIW's Fair Food Program"...
Martin Sheen (shown above with Wilson Perez of the CIW at last fall's School of the America's gathering in Columbus, Georgia, where Mr. Sheen gave a moving speech on the power of non-violent protest in the pursuit of human rights) is an Emmy Award-winning actor and widely respected activist for human rights.
And, fortunately for us, Mr. Sheen's commitment to human rights extends to the Fair Food movement, too! Late last month, as he has many times over the years before, Mr. Sheen lent his voice to the Campaign for Fair Food, calling on Trader Joe's to live up to its reputation as a progressive grocer and sign an agreement with the CIW to support the Fair Food Program.
In a letter to Trader Joe's CEO Dan Bane, Mr. Sheen wrote, in part:
"Dear Mr. Bane, I am writing to convey my fervent support for Trader Joe's signing an accord with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers to better the lives of the men and women that harvest the tomatoes sold in your company's stores... ... Frankly it is both surprising and deeply disappointing that Trader Joe's has yet to make a binding commitment to support the CIW's Fair Food Program. Given your company's progressive reputation, I imagine the overwhelming majority of Trader Joe's customers share my hope that your company will speedily join with the CIW to do its part in advancing the human rights of farmworkers." read more |
You can read the letter in its entirety here.
We are extremely proud and gratified to count Mr. Sheen among the ever growing number of Fair Food activists across the country. We look forward to working more closely with him in the coming months as the focus intensifies on California-based Trader Joe's!
December 31, 2011
Should auld acquaintance be forgot...
Mark Bittman, Gourmet Magazine give end of the year tips of the hat to CIW;
Two holiday-themed videos close out 2011 in the Campaign for Fair Food...
The year 2011 in the Campaign for Fair Food may ultimately be known as the year the CIW caught the attention of the food movement, with high profile articles and appearances giving farmworkers an important new voice - and the issue of human rights an important new place -- in the growing debate over how we produce and sell food in this country.
But that didn't make it any less of a surprise to see two of the food world's most important voices give the CIW prominent mention in their end-of-the-year lists of food organizations to support in 2012.
December 23, 2011
Christmas in Immokalee is a time for reflection...
 |
CIW members act out the Nativity scene at this past Wednesday's community meeting in Immokalee. The re-enactment is an annual event, designed in the tradition of popular theater to provoke reflection on the meaning of Christ's birth into poverty. |
Today we received an email entitled "Reflections from Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon on Why Christians Should Be Particularly Aware of Poverty and Justice Issues at Christmastime." It included the text of his comments from earlier this month at the Faithful Budget Prayer Vigil on Capitol Hill. We want to begin this post today by sharing an extended excerpt of his comments:
December 12, 2011
Fair Food protests bring International Human Rights Day home to Florida, Publix!
150 in Miami, 100 in Naples pressure Publix to protect farmworker rights in its tomato supply chain
Carrying a hand-written scroll calling on Publix to "honor and guarantee the fundamental human rights of farmworkers which have been violated and ignored far too long," 150 farmworkers and Fair Food activists descended on a newly-opened Publix store in Miami yesterday to press their demands for ethical purchasing practices from the Florida grocery giant. The same store had been the subject of a pray-in by local South Florida religious leaders earlier last week...
Interfaith pray-in greets shoppers at Publix Grand Opening in Miami!
Since the first pray-in at Publix back in August of this year, clergy have returned several times to the produce aisles to protest, through prayer, Publix's refusal to support the CIW's groundbreaking Fair Food Program.
Yesterday, at the grand opening of the new Publix store in Miami -- the same store where people will gather for a protest on Sunday in commemoration of International Human Rights Day -- an interfaith group of clergy met to express their frustration with Florida's supermarket giant because, in their words, "Publix has been refusing to dialogue, so all that's left is for us to pray..."
December 5, 2011
"Groupthink Isn't Sustainable"
Final installment in 3-part essay on Trader Joe's, Publix puts supermarkets' stubborn resistance to Campaign for Fair Food under the microscope...
"Dear Joe" letters keep coming...
Some of you may remember an article we posted here about two weeks ago by Ted Coine, a widely-followed author and commentator in the world of business leadership and corporate social responsibility. The article, entitled ""Doing the Right Thing Pays: Sustainable Leadership Series", took a close look at why companies like Trader Joe's and Publix, despite their reputations as ethical businesses, take such a stubborn stand against a widely-accepted and respected initiative like the Fair Food Program. Here's how he wrapped up Part 2, leaving us hanging for the conclusion:
".... Now, the CIW is locked in a similar struggle with Publix, one of America’s largest supermarket chains, and with Trader Joe’s. And following the pattern of the fast food giants, these two companies are stonewalling. It seems that penny is more than either is willing to pay for ethically-source food. It’s a fascinating, troubling clash of wills to observe. A clash that seems especially inconsistent with the reputation of a firm like Trader Joe’s, which has branded itself as highly ethical, as dedicated to CSR. In my next exclusive post here at SBF, on December 2, we’ll dive into the struggle CIW has been fighting for that extra penny. Hopefully by then both Trader Joe’s and Publix will have responded to my queries. My underlying question? Can a company be Good just some of the time, and still prosper from a reputation as a responsible actor in society? Or is Corporate Social Responsibility a matter of consistently-applied principles, of doing the right thing even when no one’s looking?" Read more |
Well, Part 3 is here, and it was worth the wait. Titled "Groupthink Isn't Sustainable," it is a rare inside-the-board-room look at the possible thinking behind the grocery giants' inexplicable refusal to support the innovative and virtually cost-free Fair Food Program. It is well worth taking a few moments to read if you are interested in understanding the psychology behind the resistance to progress. Here's an extended except:
"... Now it’s Trader Joe’s and Publix’s turn in the spotlight. And even though these two companies are publicly committed to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), they have fallen into the familiar pattern of resistance shown by their predecessors. Even my most laissez faire, politically conservative acquaintances are shocked by the positions of Trader Joe’s and Publix in this matter. “It’s only a penny!” one remarked the other day. Another surprised me by saying, “This is so black and white! What’s the problem?” This brings up something that carries far beyond tomatoes, to Sustainable Leadership in general. As a professor of psychology recently asked me, “What is the larger issue with these companies? Surely they can’t be resisting because of a penny. There must be something deeper.” Here, then, are some thoughts on Sustainable Leadership and ethical decision-making.
|
He concludes by writing:
"... I hope these insights prove useful to leaders who wish to act sustainably, and to those who would seek to influence them. A step back to evaluate motivation is essential to strategic decision-making. If CSR isn’t a strategic imperative, I don’t know what is. My questions for these two prominent brands are this:
|
Meanwhile, consumers fed up with this kind of thinking by Trader Joe's continue to pen "Dear Joe" letters, explaining why they are breaking up with the company they used to love. Here's one of many that have come to the office since we announced the Dear Joe letter movement in November, this one from Max Ray "devoted TJ's shopper from ages 0 to 28":
Dear Mr. Bane, One of my earliest memories is shopping at Trader Joe's, the original store in Pasadena. I remember free cookies, friendly employees, delicious healthy affordable food (especially the dried strawberries and cherries!). I was thrilled when Trader Joe's came to my adult home, Philadelphia. I loved that the food was still healthy, delicious and affordable. I especially loved that I had a source for good, spicy, California-style Mexican food. So you can imagine my surprise when I learned that Trader Joe's, a store I relied on for affordable fair-trade products, was not signed on to the Coalition of Immokalee Workers Fair Food Agreement. I was sure that you'd be better than Taco Ball, Whole Foods, Sodexo, McDonalds, and the other less friendly and delicious stores that have signed on. Sad as it makes me, I will not be shopping at Trader Joe's until you have signed the agreement. Sincerely, |
That's what groupthink gets you.
October 27, 2011
"I have never seen such an act of disrespect"...
Pastor reacts to ripping down of clergy letters by Trader Joe's rep in scathing Op/Ed*...
Story picked up by The Atlantic, as well: "Trader Joe's Locks the Doors to Rabbis and Ministers"
*now with postscript...
Toward the end of the huge march and rally at Trader Joe's headquarters in Monrovia last Friday, a strange thing happened. Though many of the protesters saw it at the time, no one happened to capture the moment on film or video, and so we decided not to include it or mention it in our photo report from the action.
But since that time, the incident -- during which someone from Trader Joe's corporate headquarters tore down two large clergy letters taped to their doors while protesters, gathered across the street, looked on in disbelief (on right, the letters are shown taped to the doors moments before being torn down) -- has sparked a growing controversy...
September 8, 2011
Turned away... but not turned back!
(Photo by Calvin Knight, Lakeland Ledger. See his excellent photo gallery from the final day of the tour here.)
Above:
Leaders of the 200-mile Pilgrimage to Publix ride the streets of Lakeland on the final leg to Publix corporate headquarters Tuesday. Publix CEO Ed Crenshaw refused to meet with the workers and rejected an invitation to visit Immokalee to learn first-hand about farmworker poverty and the Fair Food Program. Workers and their allies were disappointed, but not dissuaded from their quest to win the support of Florida's largest grocer for more humane labor standards in the fields.
Photo report from final day now online!
By now you probably know the outcome of the 11-day, 200-mile bike tour from Immokalee to Publix corporate headquarters in Lakeland. If not, it's summed up here.
But while we now know the outcome of the tour, the consequences of the tour are still very much to be determined.
Publix's shocking display of indifference to the plight of farmworkers in its home state -- and to the concerns of Publix customers who support the Campaign for Fair Food -- left the workers and their allies who gathered in Lakeland for Tuesday's final leg of the bike tour deeply frustrated. Their frustration is shared by many more consumers around Florida and across the country who have written in the past two days to express their renewed commitment to the Campaign in the face of what one emailer called "such an insulting response."
The bike tour, and Publix's callous response to the workers' simple invitation to dialogue, served to reveal a side of the company that many of its customers, until now, really didn't want to believe was true: Publix not as a kind neighbor, a company uniquely tuned to its community's needs, but Publix as a cold, arrogant corporation, a company driven only by profit, indifferent to the suffering of its neighbors, deaf to its customers' heartfelt concerns.
A revelation like that is hard to forget, and it fuels the kind of frustration that leads to expansion of the campaign - with new ardor among those already committed to the fight, and new allies brought into the fold by the unmistakable injustice of the moment -- not retreat.
The history of this campaign is still to be written. Perhaps Publix's imperious reaction to the bikers will convince consumers that the company will not be moved. Or, perhaps it will move ever more Publix customers to demand that their neighborhood grocer live up to the words of its founder, George Jenkins, when he said, "Never let making a profit stand in the way of doing the right thing."
Click here to see the final photo update from the Pilgrimage to Publix. And stay tuned this season to see just which way things break in this ever evolving campaign.
March 15, 2011
"It is a sword that heals"...
Do the Right Thing Tour media page now complete, see the full story of the unforgettable tour in videos, photos, and first-hand reports!
"It is a sword that heals." We came across those words midway through the Do the Right Thing Tour, during our stop in Atlanta.
On our second day in the city, we received a tour of Atlanta's many Civil Rights movement landmarks -- churches, schools, and other places involved in the city's rich and inspirational history of struggle against legalized segregation. The tour took us to Morehouse College (Dr. Martin Luther King's alma mater), where Mr. Charles Black (our tour guide and himself a distinguished veteran of many battles for civil rights in Atlanta), read aloud Dr. King's words from a statue erected in his honor on the campus. The quote reads:
"Non-violence is a powerful and just weapon. It is a weapon unique in history which cuts without wounding and ennobles the man who wields it. It is a sword that heals." |
This quote -- and the tour of which it was a part -- had a powerful impact on the crew from Immokalee. It filled us with renewed energy and enthusiasm after a week on the road, cast our struggle with Publix in a penetrating new light, and provided a stark new outline for our reports from the road the rest of the way.
Following our stay in Atlanta -- and from the new perspective provided by standing, however briefly, on the shoulders of the great heroes of this country's Civil Rights movement -- we came to understand our own movement in a more profound way. This new insight was captured in the words of Lucas Benitez from the stage during the final rally in Tampa:
"It is not a question of whether we will win, but when. And when we do win, we will not only help free workers from oppressive conditions in the fields, but we will also free Publix from the impossible burden of supporting and justifying that oppression." read more |
We have finally put the finishing touches on the media page from the tour, and by going there you can see the full story of the unforgettable tour in videos, photos, and first-hand reports. So, visit the Do the Right Thing Media Page today! And to get you started that way, here is a collection of some of the incredible and inspiring videos from the tour:
NY Times editorial celebrates CIW agreement with FTGE, Campaign for Fair Food!
An editorial published in Saturday's New York Times begins:
"Fair trade is finally coming to the tomato fields of Florida, where farmworkers have won a remarkable victory in a 15-year struggle for better pay and working conditions. Last month, they struck a deal with growers to raise workers? pay and to create an industry code of conduct, a health and safety program and a system to resolve worker complaints..." read more |
The editorial goes on to give a brief primer on the history of the campaign, reminds the reader that the supermarket industry has yet to do its part to support the Fair Food movement, and concludes, "The Immokalee victory won?t impose fairness overnight, but after generations of exploitation, part of the farm industry is pointing in the right direction."You know something big is happening when events in Immokalee make it into the pages of, first, the Wall Street Journal and, now, the "Old Gray Lady".
Don't miss the great editorial!
November 16, 2010
"A WATERSHED MOMENT..."
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From left to right, Julia Perkins and Lucas Benitez of the CIW, Reggie Brown of the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, and Gerardo Reyes of the CIW share a laugh during the press conference announcing the CIW/FTGE agreement to implement the principles of Fair Food on nearly 90% of Florida's tomato fields. Photo by David Albers, Naples Daily News. See the rest of his great gallery from the press conference here. |
NEW!... Read statements of support for the CIW/FTGE agreement from Senator Dick Durbin, Senator Bernie Sanders, and the Presbyterian Church U.S.A.!
Media round-up on yesterday's big news!...
Yesterday, at a press conference in Immokalee, the CIW and the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange signed an agreement to extend the CIW's Fair Food principles ? including a strict code of conduct, a cooperative complaint resolution system, a participatory health and safety program, and a worker-to-worker education process ? to over 90% of the Florida tomato industry. You can see the press release from yesterday's event here. Today, the media has weighed in on the news, and here is a quick round up:
