TAKE ACTION FOR FAIR FOOD!

"The arc of the moral universe is long,
but it bends toward justice"

So began the address by the CIW's Lucas Benitez (right) at the May, 2008, joint press conference at the US Capitol announcing the agreement with Burger King. Lucas went on to describe the road ahead toward social responsibility in the US food industry:

"Social responsibility in this country's food industry is inevitable, and though the exploitation of Florida's farmworkers remains unconscionable today, company by company we are building a path toward justice. The next steps are up to those companies that stand before us in the road ahead.

There are companies -- like Chipotle in the restaurant world and Whole Foods in the grocery industry -- that already make claims to social responsibility yet, when it comes to tomatoes, fall far short of their lofty claims. It is time, now, that those companies live out the true meaning of their marketers' words.

And there are companies -- like Subway and WalMart -- that, by the sheer volume of their purchases, profit like few others from the pernicious poverty of workers in Florida's fields. They, too, must step up now. After eight years of this campaign -- and the very public commitment of the three largest fast-food companies in the world to the principles of Fair Food -- they can no longer claim ignorance of the problem nor can they say that the solution is not possible."

And so, with Yum Brands, McDonald's, Burger King behind us, the focus of the Campaign for Fair Food has shifted to other major companies in the restaurant and supermarket industries, companies that must now step up to help us build a world where workers in Florida's fields can enjoy a fair wage and dignified working conditions. Below are some ideas you can use to bring the Campaign to your community and help win the support of more major buyers of Florida tomatoes for the principles of Fair Food:

MANAGER LETTERS

Drop into your local Chiptole and let the manager know you support fair wages and real rights for farmworkers in Chipotle’s tomato supply chain.

Download the Chipotle manager letter here and send us a picture of yourself dropping off the letter!

POSTCARDS

Send postcards to the corporate headquarters of Chipotle and Subway. To request postcards for yourself, your organization and your friends please email us. Let us know how many of each you would like to receive.

LOCAL ACTIONS

Plan a creative action at a local Chiptole or Subway restaurant to raise consciousness among consumers about their failure to address human rights abuses in their tomato supply chain. Make your own art and pass out flyers to consumers entering or leaving the restaurants.

C + C = C (or, if you prefer, free D.V.D!)

One of the CIW's mottos is that Consciousness + Commitment = Change. You can help create consciousness in your community about the conditions in the fields and the important changes being created through the CIW’s Campaign for Fair Food. You can screen a DVD about our struggle or distribute educational materials. To receive a DVD (which includes PBS's NOW, From Slavery to Freedom, and Ronaldo the Clown) and other organizing materials such as articles, fact sheets, postcards, stickers, please email us.

ALLIANCE FOR FAIR FOOD:

The Alliance for Fair Food is a network of human rights, religious, student, labor, and grassroots organizations who work in partnership with the CIW. We promote principles and practices of socially responsible purchasing in the corporate food industry that advance and ensure the human rights of farmworkers at the bottom of corporate supply chains.

Click here to visit the AFF website!

Email the AFF at info(at)allianceforfairfood.org

STUDENT/FARMWORKER ALLIANCE:

SFA is a national network of students and youth organizing in alliance with farmworkers to eliminate sweatshop conditions and modern-day slavery in the fields. The decentralized network organizes both on and off campuses. Formed in 2000, SFA played a crucial role in the Taco Bell and McDonald's victories and is currently organizing around the Burger King campaign.

Click here to visit the SFA website!

Email SFA at organize(at)sfalliance.org

Interfaith Action of Southwest Florida is a broad-based network of people of faith – both in South Florida and throughout the U.S. – who work in partnership with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers as they struggle for human rights in the fields. Interfaith Action facilitates dialogue, reflection, education and action between farmworkers and people of faith (youth groups, congregations and national religious institutions) in order to build mutual understanding and work for lasting systemic change in the agricultural and corporate food industries.

Interfaith Action has been a key partner to the CIW since 1998, coordinating faith-based participation and logistical support for CIW actions, tours, educational events, and more. People of faith across the country have played a central role in the success of the CIW’s campaigns, educating their communities and working side-by-side with the CIW in their quest for social and economic justice.

Email Interfaith Action at info(at)interfaithact.org