CIW meets with Florida Gov: “sincere, productive”

Julia Perkins, CIW; Gerardo Reyes-Chavez, CIW; Lucas Benitez, CIW; Gov. Charlie Crist; Florida's Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp; Greg Asbed, CIW, Laura Germino, CIW in the Governor's office in Tallahassee. Photo courtesy of CIW.

March 2009 – On Wednesday, March 25, representatives of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers met with Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida about modern-day slavery in the fields and the systemic poverty and abuses faced by farmworkers in Florida agriculture.

Following the meeting, Gov. Crist told the press “I was deeply moved by what they had to say and we want to help them as much as we possibly can." Gov. Crist will release a public statement soon. 

Gerardo Reyes Chaves of the CIW characterized the meeting as “sincere, productive, and hopefully the beginning of the end of modern-day slavery in Florida.” Read a full report.

Thank you to everyone who signed the open letter to Gov. Crist which garnered more than 39,000 signatures and was, together with the press conference in Tallahassee, critical for making this meeting happen. Stay tuned to the Fair Food Web site and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers site to follow developments.

PC(USA) Keynote at National Anti-Slavery Conference

March 2009 – The Freedom Network U.S.A., a premier national network of anti-slavery organizations who are expert in social service and legal support for survivors of modern-day slavery, held their eighth annual conference in Dallas, Texas. The Rev. Noelle Damico of the PC(USA) Campaign for Fair Food delivered the keynote address. The audience was packed with U.S. Department of Justice officials, service providers, investigators and law enforcement. Members of Grace Presbytery also attended. The address discusses what constitutes a “human rights based approach” to ending modern-day slavery and how it enables us to address the root causes of modern-day slavery together. Download the keynote address.

Gov. Crist Agrees to Meet with CIW

At the press conference, farmworkers from CIW re-enact the most recent case of slavery where workers were beaten, chained and locked in a cargo box truck. Photo courtesy of Jacque-Jean Tiziou.

March 2009 – Thanks to a dramatic press conference in which the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and their allies called upon Florida'a Governor Crist to meet with the CIW to address modern-day slavery in the fields and more than 39,000 signatures on letters (more keep coming in!) to the governor from people across Florida and the nation, the governor has agreed to meet with the CIW. The meeting is set for March 25. For full coverage of the press conference including a photo essay and major media reports, please visit the Coalition of Immokalee Workers Web site.

The press conference on March 9 was populated with Tallahassee-based Presbyterians, many of whom had supported the CIW for years, hosting the farmworkers on truth tours and participating in campaigns. One of these was the Rev. Brant Copeland, pastor of First Presbyterian Church. He preached a powerful sermon on the following Sunday, called "Change of Business," weaving together the church's work with the CIW and Jesus' political act of turning over the money-changers' tables in the Temple.

CIW, PC(USA) to Gov. Crist: Meet with CIW

A member of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers stands on the steps of the Florida capitol building. Photo courtesy of Jean-Jacques Tiziou.

March 2009 – On Monday, March 9th, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers held a vivid press conference on the steps of the capitol building in Tallahassee, where farmworkers and their allies from the religious, human rights and student communities called on the Florida Governor to meet with the CIW.  Farmworkers dramatically and silently re-enacted a case of slavery during the press conference.  And more than 38,000 signatures on letters to Gov. Crist calling him to meet with the CIW were delivered.  The Rev. Noelle Damico spoke on behalf of the General Assembly at the event.  Members and clergy from Presbyterian churches in Tallahassee hosted the CIW for worship and educational forums during the weekend and attended the press conference.

A more complete story on the event will be forthcoming.  In the meantime, visit the Coalition of Immokalee Workers Web site for initial photos and media coverage.  And check out the Presbyterian News Service article “Coalition of Immokalee Workers to submit petition signed by faith community to Florida governor”.

Picking tomatoes in Immokalee. Photo by Scott Robertson

Religious Community Sign-On Letter to Gov. Crist of Florida

January 2009 – Presbyterians are invited to join people of faith across the country in calling on Gov. Crist to meet with the CIW to discuss ways to end modern-day slavery in Florida's fields and urge the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange to stop blocking improvements for farmworkers. To read the letter, sign on to the letter or get more background information visit the Interfaith Action of Southwest Florida Web site.

Two Sentenced for Slavery; PC(USA) calls on Gov. Crist to Act

A farmworker harvests tomatoes in Immokalee. Photo Courtesy of Scott Robertson.

December 2008 – On Friday, December 19, two members of the Navarette family were sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for enslaving tomato pickers in Immokalee, Florida. The crew leaders chained workers to a post and beat them repeatedly, locked them in a box truck every night and forced them to work without pay for two prominent Florida growers, Six L’s corporation and Pacific Tomato Growers. 

This human rights travesty is not without precedent. The Navarette case is the seventh case of modern-day slavery to be successfully prosecuted in recent years. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers has worked closely with the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI to free workers and assist with these prosecutions. [Read more]

Tallahassee to Farmworkers: One case of slavery is not so bad

CIW, Human Rights, Religious Leaders: Slavery Must Not Be Tolerated

December 2008 – When seeking a comment from Governor Charlie Crist on the pervasiveness of prosecutions of modern-day slavery in the Florida agricultural industry, the Fort Myers News Press was referred to Mr. Terence McElroy, a spokesperson from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. In an article published on Dec. 14, 2008, Mr. McElroy replied, "Of course, I say any instance is too many, and any legitimate grower certainly does not engage in that activity (slavery) but you're talking about maybe a case a year." The article chronicled recent Florida-based slavery cases which had been investigated and successfully prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice with the help of the CIW. [Read more]

Slavery Indictment Released as Senator Sanders Visits Immokalee

Slavery Indictment Released as Senator Sanders Visits Immokalee; Photo courtesy of CIW.

February 2008 – One day after a federal grand jury indicted six people in Immokalee for their part in what US Attorney Doug Molloy called, "Slavery, plain and simple," (Ft. Myers News Press, 1/18/08).US Senator Bernie Sanders declared:

"The headline in today’s newspaper says all that has to be said.  In the year 2008, in the United States of America, slavery exists.  Human beings are being forced to work against their will, are being beaten, are being denied their most basic freedoms.  This should not be happening in the United States in 2008.  This exploitation must end." 

The Rev. Noelle Damico met with Senator Sanders while he was in Immokalee to brief him on the PC(USA)’s ongoing work with the CIW.  Read about Senator Sanders’ visit and see a video of the 1/19/08 press conference.

CIW Northeast Fair Food Tour
December 2-10

CIW and Subway representatives sign agreement. Photo courtesy of CIW

The tour got a jumpstart as Subway Restaurant Chain forged an agreement with the C.I.W. as workers and their allies stood prepared to rally outside their Miami-based purchasing cooperative, IPC, on December 2. For details on the agreement, please visit the C.I.W. Web site. The Northeast tour will continue as a fair-food educational tour, focusing on the next steps in the Campaign for Fair Food, particularly bringing the grocery industry on board. The C.I.W. has published a revised tour schedule for all cities including: Raleigh/Durham, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, Boston, Providence, New Haven, Long Island and New York City. Please join Presbyterians all along the northeast in celebrating the recent agreement, meeting the farmworkers and preparing to take on the grocery industry. Vist the C.I.W. Web site for full schedule.

Evan Silverstein

In Memoriam: Evan Silverstein

“In life, in death, in life beyond death, we belong to God.”  Last week these words resounded within my heart as I attended the memorial service for Evan Silverstein, reporter for Presbyterian News Service. Evan died suddenly from a massive heart attack at the age of 42 on November 9. [Read more]

Stated Clerk commends Whole Foods and CIW on agreement

Gradye Parsons

September 2008 - The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) and Whole Foods Market have reached a landmark agreement to improve wages and working conditions for farmworkers in the Florida tomato fields. In a statement about the agreement, Gradye Parsons, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly, said, "By voluntarily stepping forward, Whole Foods Market has signaled that 'the time is now' for members of the grocery industry to join in forging a more just and sustainable food system together with the farmworkers."

Read the Stated Clerk's entire statement on the CIW and Whole Foods Market.

Learn more about the content of the CIW and Whole Foods Market agreement.

GA Attendees write to CEOs

June 2008 - 433 attendees at the 218th General Assembly in San Jose wrote to the CEOs of Chipotle, Subway and Whole Foods, urging these companies to work with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers now, to improve poverty wages and exploitative working conditions in the tomato fields of Florida. 

Download the letters to Chipotle, Subway and Whole Foods.

Stated Clerk: CIW-Burger King agreement a ‘plumb line of justice’

May 2008 - Stated Clerk of the General Assembly, the Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, commends the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and the Burger King Corporation upon reaching an historic agreement to improve farmworkers' wages and working conditions in the fields of Florida. Dr. Kirkpatrick writes, "The agreement stands as a plumb line of justice, granting a needed wage increase, establishing zero tolerance for illegal acts and involving farmworkers in the creation and enforcement of a strong code of conduct for suppliers." Dr. Kirkpatrick commends the CIW for leading a "principled campaign" and goes on to applaud BK CEO John Chidsey's apology for his company's derogatory statements about the CIW as "necessary and appropriate" and as "setting a new bar for integrity among corporate leaders." He concludes, "Together let us press onward with hope and determination, toward that soon-coming day when these gains for human rights and socially responsible purchasing will be realized throughout the food industry."  [Read full statement]

CIW and BK To Work Together!

May 23, 2006 – Today, the CIW and Burger King Corporation signed an agreement to improve farmworkers’ wages and enforce human rights standards in the fields!

A signing ceremony and press conference took place in Washington, D.C. at the U.S. Capitol, hosted by Senator Bernie Sanders.

Members of CIW, Representatives from Burger King, Senator Bernie Sanders and allies of Fair Food including the Rev. Noelle Damico (third from right) representing the PC(USA) at the press conference in the U.S. Capitol on 5/23/08. Photo by Fritz Meyer

Your prayers, your participation in marches, the incredible number of signatures you garnered in the petition campaign, and your ongoing letters and emails to Burger King made this victory possible.

We read in Hebrews 11:1 that “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Through faith we know that this agreement is a harbinger of that soon-coming day, when the entire fast-food and grocery industry will embrace these human rights standards, and farmworkers will enjoy a fair wage and humane working conditions.  As we celebrate this human rights victory, let us also renew our comittment to keep walking together with the CIW until we see that day dawns.

• Read a related story by the Presbyterian News Service: Burger King and CIW strike deal – PC(USA)-backed farmworkers will receive higher wages, improved work conditions

Peace River Presbytery Gives Portion of Peacemaking Offering to CIW’s Community Center

Members of CIW stand outside their new community center. Photo by Noelle Damico.

May 2008 — For the Presbyterians in Peace River Presbytery, peacemaking is about living in a right relationship with your brothers and sisters.  What better way to work towards that end than to support the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW)?  The Mission and Justice Committee of Peace River Presbytery voted to disburse our peacemaking funds totaling $4,000 to our farmworker neighbors to help with the new CIW Community Center.  The radio station, which is housed in the Community Center, received a grant from Self Development of People (SDOP) in 2007 to help upgrade their equipment that enabled them to reach more people in the Immokalee area. [Read more]

CIW and Campaign for Fair Food Featured in New Book and Articles

Your America: Democracy's Local Heroes. Photo courtesy of CIW.

July 2008 – The Coalition of Immokalee Workers and the Campaign for Fair Food are featured in a new book by John Siceloff and Jason Mahoney entitled Your America: Democracy's Local Heroes. Visit the CIW’s Web site to see their interview on the Today Show.

The recent victory with Burger King and the farmworkers’ ongoing efforts to eliminate exploitation in the fields have also been featured in The Economist and the Fort Myers News-Press.

Scandal Grows: Burger King Under Pressure

CIW supporters march to BK headquarters, November 2007, Photo by Scott Robertson.

May 2008 – In “Burger with a Side of Spies,” Fast Food Nation author Eric Schlosser exposed that Burger King hired a private security firm to spy on the Student/Farmworker Alliance, and CEO John Chidsey knew about it. This revelation came on the heels of the press tracing anonymous online posts, which questioned the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ (CIW) integrity and attacked the organization, to Burger King’s Vice President Steve Grover. [Read more]

U.S. Senate Hearing Exposes Farmworker Exploitation;
Florida Growers, Fast Food Industry Called to Account

Left to right: Senator Sanders, Senator Kennedy and Senator Durbin at the U.S. Senate hearing.

April 2008 – On Tuesday, April 15, the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee of the U.S. Senate held the first-ever hearing into the labor conditions of farmworkers in Florida.  These historic proceedings involved testimony from the CIW, the Collier County Sherriff’s Department Human Trafficking Division, the Southern Poverty Law Center, author Eric Schlosser, Reggie Brown of the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange and Roy Reina of Granger Farms as well as statements and questions from Senators Edward Kennedy, Bernie Sanders, Dick Durbin and Sherrod Brown.  The Senators lambasted the FTGE for obstructing the penny-per-pound payments to farmworkers that are a part of the CIW’s agreements with Yum! Brands and McDonald’s.  Senator Durbin called on all present to “do the math” as he devastated the FTGE’s claim that workers could be paid $12.46 an hour when that would mean a farmworker would need to accomplish the unimaginable task of harvesting 3,000 tomatoes per hour.  Fast-food corporations who profit from farmworker exploitation were also scrutinized and criticized for their knowing ignorance and complicity in both perpetuating and benefiting from poverty and slavery in the tomato fields.  To read the full report, see pictures, press accounts and link to full coverage of the Senate hearing, visit the Coalition of Immokalee Workers Online Headquarters.

Farmworkers, Presbyterians Deliver Petitions with 85,000 Signatures to Burger King

Pile of signed petitions, creatively affixed to farmworkers clothing, tomato signs and posters. Photo by Brigitte Gynther

April 2008 – Presbyterian leaders joined farmworkers in delivering petitions with 85,000 signatures from all 50 states and 42 countries to Burger King headquarters in Miami on April 28 calling for an end to slavery and sweatshop conditions in Florida's fields. Petition signers pledged they are “prepared to boycott Burger King.”  That morning the Ft. Myers News Press broke that Burger King vice president Steve Grover had used his middle-school daughter’s email address to blog and email unfounded and derogatory information about the CIW on Web sites. [Read more]

Congressional Leaders Sign CIW Petition and Call Hearings

Rep. John Conyers, Sen. Bernie Sanders. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, Sen. Richard Durbin. Photo by Fritz Meyer.

March 2008 — On Thursday, March 13, Congressional leaders and representatives from the human rights, labor, religious and student communities gathered on Capitol Hill to sign the CIW’s Petition to End Modern-Day Slavery and Sweatshops in the Fields.  Political leaders announced Congressional Hearings and sent letters to major grocery chains that supply the federal government. [Read more]

Kirkpatrick and Valentine Sign CIW Petition to End Modern-Day Slavery

GAMC Executive Director Linda Valentine (left) and General Assembly Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick sign the anti-slavery petition circulated by the PC(USA)-backed Coalition of Immokalee Workers. Photo by Jerry Van Marter

March 2008 — On Monday, March 10, the Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, stated clerk of the General Assembly, and Ms. Linda Bryant Valentine, executive director of the General Assembly Council, signed the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ National Petition to End Modern-Day Slavery and Sweatshops in the Fields. 

“It is my sincere hope that by my signing this petition other people of faith and conscience will be inspired to make this commitment to advance human rights as well,” Dr. Kirkpatrick said. “And that Burger King, which has worked so assiduously to avoid responsibility for shameful conditions in the tomato fields of its suppliers, would change course now and work with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers.”

• Sign the CIW’s petition.
• Read Dr. Kirkpatrick’s public statement on the signing.
• Read the Presbyterian News Service story,  “Petition drive to end ‘modern-day slavery’ launched by church-backed farmworkers: Campaign threatens boycott of Burger King”.

Dr. Kirkpatrick and Ms. Valentine join Presbyterians across the country who are already at work collecting signatures for this petition which calls on Burger King and other food industry leaders to work with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers now to end exploitation in the fields and indicates that signatories are prepared to boycott Burger King now if the company fails to do so.

The Presbyterian News Service Story also describes the context of the petition and the creative signature campaigns underway at First Presbyterian Church in Hollywood, FL and at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.  Check out the links above and be inspired to circulate this important petition creatively within your own congregation, presbytery and community.  Be sure to let us know how you’re circulating the petition by emailing us.

CIW Launches Petition Campaign to End Slavery and Sweatshops in the Fields

February 2008 — The year 2008 marks the 200th anniversary of the U.S. ban on the importation of slaves.  And yet in November of 2007, the seventh instance of slavery in the agricultural industry was uncovered in Immokalee.  In November a grand jury indicted six people for slavery under the 13th Amendment.  At the close of the 18th century, abolitionists in Manchester, England, launched a petition campaign to demand the English parliament end the slave trade.  The volume of petitions nearly shut down the parliament and marked the beginning of the end of the transatlantic slave trade. 

Taking a page out of history, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers has launched a petition campaign calling on Burger King and other food industry leaders to work with the CIW to pay a penny more per pound to farmworkers harvesting tomatoes and to establish a enforceable, human-rights based code of conduct to end modern-day slavery and other abuses in the fields.  The petition puts the industry on notice that signatories “are prepared to stop patronizing Burger King now and other food industry leaders in the future, should they fail to do so.” 

Presbyterians across the country are already hard at work collecting signatures and drawing attention to the exploitative effect that the purchasing practices of Burger King and other retail food corporations are having on the men and women who harvest our tomatoes. [Read more and take action.]

Burger King hears from farmworkers and PC(USA)

Protesters march through Miami to picket HQ of fast-food giant

People carry signs as they join the Coalition of Immokalee Workers in a protest march against Burger King on Nov. 30 in Miami. Photo by Fritz Myer

December 2007 — Presbyterians from across the country joined more than 1,500 church-backed farmworkers and their supporters, many chanting and waving signs, in a peaceful protest outside Burger King’s Miami corporate headquarters on Friday (Nov. 30).

The fast-food giant is the latest target in an ongoing campaign by the Florida-based Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), a farmworkers organization that receives support from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and other religious organizations.

The CIW’s goal is to get Burger King to follow McDonald’s and Taco Bell parent Yum! Brands Inc., who have agreed to pay an additional penny per pound for tomatoes picked by Florida farmworkers. [Read more]

Presbyterians prominent in march on Burger King

Presbyterians march on Burger King in Miami. Photo JJ Tiziou .

November 2007 — With shouts of determination and blessings from Roman Catholic and Jewish clergy, farmworkers and consumers took to the streets to demand Burger King work with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers to improve wages and conditions for farmworkers harvesting tomatoes in the fields of Florida.  Marchers from less than one year old to more than 80 cheered, sang and drummed their way through the sweltering streets of Miami, proclaiming the message “fair food will reign” across the city.

The march began at the offices of Goldman Sachs, a private equity firm that is heavily invested in Burger King.  By the time the marchers were in the final miles approaching Burger King headquarters, the police estimated that their ranks had swelled to 1,500! [Learn more]

• Campaign in brief
• Read the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' Web site for more photos and narrative.
• Read President Carter's letter to the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange

Witness inside and outside Burger King’s annual meeting

November 2007 – As shareholders arrived at Burger King’s annual meeting on Thursday, Nov. 29, they were greeted with a large banner that read “Burger King Exploits Farmworkers.”  Meanwhile, inside the meeting Lucas Benitez, a farmworker and one of the founders of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, addressed the shareholders during their open question portion of the meeting (which is required of all public companies by the S.E.C.). [Read Lucas’ address.]

Stated Clerk to BK and FL Growers: We Are Prepared to Go the Distance!

Clifton Kirkpatrick

November 2007 – On the heels of public revelations that Burger King and the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, the growers’ lobby, have been cooperating to roll back the CIW’s agreements with Yum! Brands and McDonald’s, the Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly, writes:

"In the course of history there have always been those who have opposed the advancement of human rights.  But the fundamental truth of human dignity has always triumphed, if not immediately, then eventually.  Burger King and the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange (FTGE) are using their power to try and turn back the inevitable progress of human rights for farmworkers.  And their coordinated tactics, which squarely target some of the poorest, most vulnerable members of our society, are as morally repugnant as they are in vain ….

"The intransigence and duplicity of Burger King and the FTGE may delay justice for those who supply their tomatoes. And as Dr. King said, 'Justice delayed is justice denied.' But they will not prevail. We are prepared to do what it takes, as long as it takes, walking hand in hand with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and all consumers of conscience to achieve the basic human rights for these farmworkers to which other industry leaders have committed." [Read the full statement]

Read the press coverage and CIW’s analysis of the latest developments.

CIW Wins International Anti-Slavery Award

November 2007 — Anti-Slavery International, founded in 1839, is the world's oldest international human rights organization.  On Nov. 11th ASI announced that the CIW has been selected as the recipient of this premiere prize for their “extraordinary contribution toward tackling modern-day slavery in the United States agricultural industry.”  The PC(USA) nominated the CIW for this award in the spring and we are delighted they’ve been selected because it underscores not only the CIW’s ground-breaking and effective work, but also the very serious human rights abuses that are alive and well in the agricultural industry today. [Learn more]

• Read the Presbyterian News Service Story.

A boy writes a letter to the CEO of Burger King. Photo by Noelle Damico.

Children and Youth Write to Burger King CEO

October 2007 – All across the country children in church school have been using the new Fair Food curriculum and writing to Mr. John Chidsey, CEO of Burger King. Their letters are eloquent and moving. Fast-food companies target our children with toys and promotions designed to get them to buy their food. Who better than children and youth themselves, to lead the campaign for fair food? Like Samuel who was called as a youth to be a prophet, these young witnesses are making a difference.  Read excerpts from the letters.

Ecumenical Leaders Urge BK to Work with CIW

October 2007 –  The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with leaders from the wider faith community who are calling on Burger King to work with the CIW to guarantee justice and human rights to the farmworkers harvesting tomatoes to its suppliers. Below are links to letters representing from the growing chorus for fair food.

Earlier this month, Roman Catholic Archbishop John Favalora of Miami is the latest Christian leader to write a public letter to Burger King CEO John Chidsey, urging Mr. Chidsey to work with the CIW to guarantee "justice and fairness for those who provide manual labor in the fields." Read the full letter .

The Rev. Michael Livingston, President of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.

Bishop Timothy Whitaker, United Methodist Church, Florida Conference

Bishop Leo Frade, Episcopal Church Diocese of Southeast Florida.

The Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the PC(USA)

Sept. – Oct.  2007

Farmworkers visited 13 cities, holding workshops and protests along the way — laying the groundwork for the national mobilization at Burger King headquarters in Miami set for November 30 — December 2. Presbyterians in Florida provided housing and food, host educational forums and invite CIW to their worship. View the Daily Truth Tour Report and Photo Journal. Wondering why there was a truth tour? Read the CIW’s announcement or read the announcement online.

PC(USA) to Burger King: Retract False Statements

Sept. 2007 — The Stated Clerk of the General Assembly publicly calls upon Steven Grover, vice president at Burger King, to immediately retract disparaging and inaccurate comments he made to the press about the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) and the CIW’s ground-breaking agreements with Yum! Brands and McDonald’s Corporations. [read the full letter]

Read “Kirkpatrick to Burger King: retract ‘false’ statements”, 10/02/07, Presbyterian News Service, Evan Silverstein.

Read CIW’s response to Burger King

It Costs Tomato Growers Nothing To Back Farmworkers’ Efforts

Oct. 2007 — Read the Rev. Noelle Damico’s guest opinion piece in the Naples Daily News (9/30/07) where she responds to growers’ claims that farmworkers are not poor.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers lauded in new book on slavery

The book cover of Nobodies: Modern American Slave Labor and the Dark Side of the New Global Economy. Photo courtesty of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers.

Sept. 2007 — “Nobodies: Modern American Slave Labor and the Dark Side of the New Global Economy” by John Bowe is hitting bookstores this week. The book details the horrific conditions in the fields of Florida as well as the CIW’s innovative efforts to expose and address modern day slavery. Read an excerpt published by the Wall Street Journal. Bowe, a respected journalist who covered the CIW’s anti-slavery work for the New Yorker Magazine in 2003, the book has received rave reviews. Consider it for your church’s book study. It’s a great way to introduce congregations to why it is necessary to eradicate the economic practices which allow slavery to flourish. And your voice matters. Join with consumers of conscience across the nation to demand Burger King and other fast-food corporations work with the CIW to address exploitation in their supply chains! Don’t delay, take action!

The campaign continues to convince Burger King to change its purchasing practices so farmworkers receive fair wages. Photo courtesy of Jeff Crespi.

CIW Holds Successful FL-wide Truth Tour

Sept. 2007 — Farmworkers are visiting 13 cities, holding workshops and protests along the way — laying the groundwork for the national mobilization at Burger King headquarters in Miami set for November 30 — December 2. Presbyterians in all Florida presbyteries are on the move to provide housing and food, host educational forums and invite CIW to their worship. View the Daily Truth Tour Report and Photo Journal. If you’re in Florida, your help is needed. Read the CIW’s announcement which lists all the cities (or read the announcement online) and contact the Rev. Noelle Damico to get involved. Learn other ways to take action.

McDonald’s Truth Tour 2007: Behind the Golden Arches

February 2007 — The Coalition of Immokalee Workers are planning a multi-city truth tour to expose the truth about farmworker exploitation that lies behind the “golden arches.”

The tour will culminate with a mass rally at McDonald’s global headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., on Friday, April 13, and a Carnaval Parade for Fair Food in downtown Chicago on Saturday, April 14. Religious and human rights notables such as the Rev. Michael Livingston, President of the National Council of Churches, Delores Huerta, co-founder of the UFW, and Kerry Kennedy will join the CIW in calling on McDonald’s to work with the CIW to end the exploitation of farmworkers in its tomato supply chain. [Read full article and get tour schedule]

Yum! Brands extends agreement with CIW to ALL its restaurants

May 2007 — On Thursday, May 17, Yum! Brands announced that it has extended the 2005 agreement with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers that improved wages and working conditions for farmworkers harvesting tomatoes for Taco Bell to the other four of its brands.  Jonathan Blum, Executive Vice President for Yum! Brands explained to the Associated Press,“ it's an important thing to be supportive of the CIW and we hope other restaurants and supermarkets will follow suit."

Will Burger King join McDonald’s, Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver’s and A&W Restaurants in working with the CIW? Let BK know you want fair food that ensures the human rights of farmworkers. Take action!

Read the AP Story on the Extension of the Yum-CIW Agreement in Business Week.

Read more about the CIW-Yum! Brands Agreement.

Yum! Brands expands deal with tomato pickers to all its restaurants.

CIW and McDonald’s reach agreement; Focus turns to Burger King

Seated from left: Buddy McEntire of McEntire Produce; Bob Langert, Vice President for Corporate Social Responsibility at McDonald's; Lucas Benitez, Coalition of Immokalee Workers; and Tom Crick, Senior Political Analyst, Conflict Resolution Program for the Carter Center. Photo courtesy of CIW Online.

With the arrival of the 2007 Truth Tour in Chicago just days away, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, McDonald's and its suppliers gathered at the Carter Center in Atlanta on Monday, April 9, to announce an agreement that is the cornerstone for industry-wide change. The agreement guarantees:

1. A penny more per pound to workers harvesting tomatoes for McDonald's;
2. A stronger code of conduct based on the principle of worker participation;
3. And a collaborative effort to develop a third party mechanism for monitoring conditions in the fields and investigating workers' complaints of abuse.

• Read the CIW-McDonald’s Joint Press Release
• Read Clifton Kirkpatrick’s Public Statement Commending CIW and McDonald’s

The agreement was cause for celebration as well as a rerouting of the McDonald’s Truth Tour at the very last minute, due to the need to be in Atlanta an extra day. Presbyterians in Urbana, Ill., whose stop needed to be cancelled understood this as an Easter moment and found wonderful ways to share the meals and joy they had prepared for the farmworkers’ visit. Read this great story from Pastor Don Mason of First Presbyterian Church, Urbana, Ill.

On Friday, April 13, the farmworkers and their allies celebrated with a conference and rally at DuPage University in Glen Ellyn, Ill.  The Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly, and Linda Valentine, Executive Director of the General Assembly Council, opened the rally with congratulatory words. Other speakers included the Rev. Michael Livingston, President of the National Council of Churches, Delores Huerta, co-founder of United Farm Workers, and governmental and labor leaders.  Following the celebration rally, buses took workers to nearby Burger King restaurants for peaceful protests, calling on the fast food giant to change course and work with the CIW to improve wages and working conditions in the Florida tomato fields.

• Presbyterian News Service Story: Pause to praise -
  Immokalee workers celebrate McDonald’s victory, Burger King next.
• Burger King Campaign Analysis by CIW
• Take Action – write Burger King!

Truth Tour participants rallied outside two Chicago-area Burger Kings.

The celebration continued on Saturday, April 14 as the threat of freezing rain forced the CIW to cancel its Parade for Fair Food and to move the massive rally set for Chicago’s Federal Plaza indoors to the House of Blues at the last moment. More than 2000 people filled the House of Blues to capacity and thousands were sadly turned from the door with sincerest apologies from CIW because of limited space. After rousing speeches by religious, student and labor allies of CIW and phenomenal sets by local and nationally known musicians, Lucas Benitez and other members of the Coalition took the stage. They announced that the fair food movement will now squarely focus its energy on Burger King. The CIW has given Burger King until the end of this year to come to the table or face an intensification of the campaign. Then Tom Morello and Zack de la Rocha, former leaders of the innovative rock group, Rage Against the Machine, then took the stage and debuted a song written about CIW and the Campaign for Fair Food. See video of the event (must have quicktime to view clip).

The PC(USA) has joined with the CIW and other members of the Alliance for Fair Food in calling on Burger King to work with the CIW since the CIW’s March 2005 agreement with Taco Bell. Clifton Kirkpatrick has written two public letters to Burger King’s CEO, the most recent in January of 2007.  Presbyterians have written letters and joined in rallies to urge the company to work with the farmworkers. In February, after two years of quiet talks with the CIW Burger King made a surprise announcement that it would not work with CIW but would send recruiters to Immokalee and consider possible charitable contributions to Immokalee based non-profits to “improve farmworkers’ lives.” These efforts were widely decried by the farmworkers, human rights and religious leaders who insist that farmworkers do not need charity; they need to be paid fairly for the work they do. Read the background stories here.

CIW and allies to Burger King: It’s time for the King to do the right thing!

Press conference at Burger King. Photo by Noelle Damico.

Feb. 15, 2007 – CIW and allies from the faith, human rights, student, labor and grassroots communities held a press conference outside of Burger King’s Miami-based headquarters declaring the inauguration of a “truth campaign” about farmworker exploitation in their supply chain. The Rev. Noelle Damico of the PC(USA)’s Campaign for Fair Food was among the religious leaders who spoke. She insisted that a proven model for advancing farmworker’s human rights is the agreement between Yum! Brands and CIW. All that is missing is Burger King’s willingness. [Read about Burger King's reaction]

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