community-based, non-corporate, participatory media
spontaneous anti-coke demo at CMU
by matt
Friday, Sep. 12, 2003 at 8:08 AM
mtoups@indymedia.org
CMU's Progressive Student Alliance reacts to a Coca-Cola promotion by distributing literature on Coke's
CMU's Progressive Student Alliance had planned to table on Thursday, September 11 with information on many campaigns. One of them included a campaign against Coca-Cola's crimes in Colombia, so when a Coca-Cola promotion appeared on campus that day, the opportunity was seized.
Armed with detailed flyers on coke's abuses, students stood beside the men and women employed by marketing firm Clear Channel Communications hired to hand out "Ice Cold Coke." Many people showed their disgust at the multinational's practices by discarding the product -- and later that day a symbolic COKE DUMP took place. Attached are photos from that dump.
also:
Listed below are union leaders at Coca-Cola's Colombian bottling plants who have been murdered. Hundreds of other Coke workers have been tortured, kidnapped and/or illegally detained by violent paramilitaries, often working closely with plant managements.
| Date | Name | Coca-Cola Plant |
 |
||
| 1989 | Avelino Chicanoy | Pasto |
| 4/8/94 | Jose Elaseasar MancoDavid | Carepa |
| 4/20/94 | Luis Enrique Giraldo Arango | Carepa |
| 4/23/95 | Luis Enrique Gomez Garado | Carepa |
| 12/5/96 | Isidro Segundo Gil | Carepa |
| 12/26/96 | Jose Librado Herrera Osorio | Carepa |
| 6/21/2001 | Oscar Dario Soto Polo | Monteria |
| 8/31/2002 | Adolfo de Jesus Munera Lopez | Baranquilla |
another coke dump
by matt
Friday, Sep. 12, 2003 at 8:08 AM
mtoups@indymedia.org
a Ceremonial Coke-Dump outside CMU's Administration building, Warner Hall. Photo Credit: Cheryl Tomblin.
PSA Press Release
by Progressive Student Alliance
Friday, Sep. 12, 2003 at 10:30 AM
psa@andrew.cmu.edu
On Thursday, the Carnegie Mellon Progressive Student Alliance staged a 'coke-dump' and spoke with students throughout the day in order to raise awareness of Coca-Cola's complicity in the murder of Colombian union organizers. The action coincided with an event sponsored by Entropy, a school run convenience store, which featured Clear Channel employees distributing free Coke to students. Beginning at 10:30am representatives of the Progressive Student Alliance distributed information explaining charges brought against Coca-Cola by the Colombian bottler's union SINALTRAINAL and encouraging students to avoid Coke products. Throughout the day concerned students donated their free Coke product to these representatives, who, in the early afternoon, proceeded to dump the collected drinks into a storm drain in front of Entropy and the central Coca-Cola distribution table.
SINALTRAINAL organizers in Colombia have suffered at the hands of right- wing paramilitary groups who have acted to suppress union activities at Coca-Cola bottling plants since 1989. Torture, threats, murders, and in at least one case an attempt to force plant workers to sign union resignation forms prepared by plant managers have all been attributed to paramilitary groups operating near bottling plants. SINALTRAINAL has brought charges against Coca-Cola's South American partners Panamco Colombia (now Coca-Cola FEMSA) and Bebidas y Alimentos. In conjunction with the International Labor Rights Fund SINALTRAINAL brought charges against Coca-Cola and its bottlers in U.S. District Court. However, last April Coca-Cola was separated from the case, an action the union intends to appeal. Coca-Cola maintains that it cannot be held responsible for the actions of Coca-Cola FEMSA/Panamco, despite its ownership of 46.4% of the voting stock and the presence of six Coca-Cola executives on the Coca-Cola FEMSA board, and ownership of 100% of Panamco's Series C preferred stock and 25% each of its class A and B shares.
"Evidence is mounting that Coca Cola has looked the other way or tacitly encouraged their bottling facilities to intimidate, harass, torture and even murder hundreds of union organizers in Colombia since 1989. Ninety years ago, the union movement in the United States coalesced right here in Pittsburgh in the Battle of Homestead. Coca Cola can't turn back the clock on union rights by bottling in Columbia.", said Quinten Steenhuis, Senior Logic and Computation and Political Science double major
"Only yesterday [Sept 10], the son of SINALTRAINAL's national director, Limberto Carranza, was kidnapped and tortured. Carranza was later told by phone "Unionist son of a bitch; we are going to break you. And if you won't break, we will attack your home". When Coca-Cola faced a similar situation in Guatemala in the early 80's it responded to consumer pressure by ending its relationship with an abusive bottler. We need to start helping to create that pressure again today", said Stuart Anderson, Senior Computer Science and Physics double major.
"In addition to Coca-Cola's abuses in Colombia, the company has deprived its bottlers in Africa access to desperately needed AIDS medication. Coca- Cola is the largest private sector employer in Africa, but despite the $621 million in Revenues and 42% profit margin the company made in Africa in 2001, it refuses to provide treatment and prevention programs for its 100,000 bottling plant workers who live in countries where as much as 25% of the population suffers from HIV or AIDS. Coke does, however, provide treatment to its mostly-white middle class management in Africa while neglecting the bottling plant workers. Coke has also refused to treat their workers in India and Thailand.
We demand that Coca-Cola treat all of its workers with the human dignity that they deserve.
-Matt Toups of the Progressive Student Alliance (PSA) and People for Workers' Rights (PWR)
"Hindustan Coca-Cola has set up bottling plants in villages in India and are running down water supplies. In these areas where drinking water is already scarce, Coca-Cola's Indian subsidiary is buying up what little water there is. This deprives villagers of an opportunity to obtain clean and affordable drinking water.
-Daniel Papasian, Progressive Student Alliance member and sophomore ECE major.
(huge) list of Coca Cola brands
by Rebecca
Friday, Sep. 12, 2003 at 12:56 PM
malekincat@earthlink.com
Check this out for a full list of Coca Cola brands worldwide:
http://www2.coca-cola.com/brands/brandlist.html
I know at least one person around here who's having a hard time remembering that Dasani and Minute Maid are Coke brands. And what about Odwalla (huh, East End Food Co-Op with the big display case by the cash desks?)
Here's a list for Pepsi since they aren't much better:
http://www.pepsico.com/company/brands.shtml
(sorry, Mountain Dew addicts...)
Odwalla
by co-op worker
Friday, Sep. 12, 2003 at 2:36 PM
I think people who are concerned should come to the next Board Meeting and give 'em hell. Of course, don't let them put this off indefinately. Ask them to take a stand on something. Circulate Coke information amongst the employees. Decorate the Odwalla case. There are many options here...Wobble the works!!
awesome!
by jan
Friday, Sep. 12, 2003 at 8:28 PM
AWESOME! You guys rock! Keep up the great work!
next co-op board meeting
by Rebecca
Saturday, Sep. 13, 2003 at 2:26 PM
malekincat@earthlink.net
"I think people who are concerned should come to the next Board Meeting and give 'em hell."
OK. That's Monday September 22 at 7:00 pm at the Co-Op...
idntfs
by idntfs
Sunday, Sep. 14, 2003 at 2:33 PM
mmm... coca cola.... murder never tasted SOOO GOOD!
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