Clinton Global Citizen award makes the headlines…

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From Food Chains director Sanjay Rawal, in the Ft. Myers News-Press: “It begs this question of companies like Publix, Ahold, Kroger and Wendy’s: When hundreds of CEOs, heads of state and thought leaders are gathered to [honor the CIW and the Fair Food Program], why are you so stubbornly against progress in America’s fields?”

News of the Clinton Global Initiative’s selection of the CIW to receive the 2014 Global Citizen Award — to be presented this coming Sunday at a gala ceremony in New York City — made the headlines far and wide this past weekend.  Media outlets from the Hollywood Reporter (ok, that might have had something to do with the fact that Leonardo DiCaprio is also being honored by the Clintons for his environmental activism) to DC’s own inside-the-beltway daily Politico (and, yes, that might have had more to do with the people doing the honoring) ran the story.

But nowhere was the story better covered than in our very own hometown press, the journalists who have watched the birth and growth of the Fair Food Program up close for years and have the context to give the news real meaning.  We wanted to be sure you saw the best of those stories today, and we’ll start with the Ft. Myers News-Press (“Coalition of Immokalee Workers to receive Clinton Global Initiative award,” 9/13/14).  Here’s an excerpt:

 

The workers clustered around a battered metal desk, reading the news: “The Clinton Global Citizen Awards honor … outstanding individuals who exemplify global citizenship through their vision and leadership.” A rooster crowed outside as Santiago Perez mouthed a silent ‘Wow.”

This sunlit office is 1,200 miles from New York City, where members of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers will travel Sept. 21 to receive the award, which will help bridge the distance between their grassroots group and the rest of the world, members say. 

The nonprofit is being honored for the “groundbreaking impact” of its Fair Food Program, which is modernizing labor conditions in Florida’s fields while improving wages for some 30,000 tomato pickers, among the lowest-paid workers in the nation, who harvest the state’s $650 million crop.

“It’s not just important for us as an organization, but for the rest of the people who’ve supported our campaign over the years,” said member Nely Rodriguez. “And it’s important because it gets our work before the world, where it can open the way for other programs in other places.” read more

Be sure to check out the article in its entirety here, it’s a great read.

The second piece that really did a great job of putting the news of the award in a broader perspective was by our local CBS affiliate, WINK TV.  You can see their video by clicking on the image below.  The interview with the CIW’s Nely Rodriguez is excellent:


 
Check back again soon for more on Sunday’s ceremony in NYC, and for more from the front in the battle for Fair Food!