Chidsey should retract statements
Noelle Damico
Issue date: 11/14/07 Section: Perspectives
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Every so often we are offered the opportunity to contribute to a significant advancement in human society. Davidson College alumnus and Burger King CEO John Chidsey, trustee and founder of the College's Chidsey Leadership Development program, has been offered such an opportunity: to join other fast-food leaders in working with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) to ensure the human rights of farm workers harvesting Burger King's tomatoes. But, to the dismay of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Mr. Chidsey and his company have not only failed to respond but have inexplicably sought to undermine these historic advances.
Farm workers harvesting tomatoes in Florida earn poverty wages and, in some instances, labor in modern-day slavery. These deplorable conditions have been documented by the U.S. Department of Labor, Oxfam America and numerous journalists. The slavery cases have been successfully prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice using laws dating from Reconstruction. The CIW, a community-based farm worker organization in southwest Florida, was presented the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights award and received commendation from the F.B.I. for its ground-breaking work in combating slavery and engaging corporations with these issues. In fact, just this week, the CIW was honored with the Anti-Slavery International award for its exceptional accomplishments.
Since 2005, the P.C. (USA) General Assembly and congregations across the country have called on Burger King to work with the CIW to address these human rights abuses, in keeping with Jesus's proclamation of "good news to the poor." [To learn more visit www.pcusas.org/fairfood.]
During his Oct. 3 Leadership Development lecture, Mr. Chidsey was asked by a concerned Davidson student whether his company was prepared to address these issues. Sadly, Mr. Chidsey took this opportunity to assail the CIW's integrity, to "debunk the myth" of farm worker poverty and to insist that churches need "the facts" explained to them. Any one of these comments alone would have been disturbing. Together, they suggest a conscious attempt to roll back the first human rights advances for Florida farm workers in recent history. The CIW has called on Burger King to pay a penny-per-pound increase directly to farm workers harvesting tomatoes for its suppliers and to establish an enforceable code of conduct in partnership with the workers, just as McDonald's and Yum! Brands (Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver's and A&W Restaurants) are already doing.
Farm workers harvesting tomatoes in Florida earn poverty wages and, in some instances, labor in modern-day slavery. These deplorable conditions have been documented by the U.S. Department of Labor, Oxfam America and numerous journalists. The slavery cases have been successfully prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice using laws dating from Reconstruction. The CIW, a community-based farm worker organization in southwest Florida, was presented the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights award and received commendation from the F.B.I. for its ground-breaking work in combating slavery and engaging corporations with these issues. In fact, just this week, the CIW was honored with the Anti-Slavery International award for its exceptional accomplishments.
Since 2005, the P.C. (USA) General Assembly and congregations across the country have called on Burger King to work with the CIW to address these human rights abuses, in keeping with Jesus's proclamation of "good news to the poor." [To learn more visit www.pcusas.org/fairfood.]
During his Oct. 3 Leadership Development lecture, Mr. Chidsey was asked by a concerned Davidson student whether his company was prepared to address these issues. Sadly, Mr. Chidsey took this opportunity to assail the CIW's integrity, to "debunk the myth" of farm worker poverty and to insist that churches need "the facts" explained to them. Any one of these comments alone would have been disturbing. Together, they suggest a conscious attempt to roll back the first human rights advances for Florida farm workers in recent history. The CIW has called on Burger King to pay a penny-per-pound increase directly to farm workers harvesting tomatoes for its suppliers and to establish an enforceable code of conduct in partnership with the workers, just as McDonald's and Yum! Brands (Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver's and A&W Restaurants) are already doing.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
marc
posted 11/16/07 @ 2:07 PM EST
Thanks for running this piece. Chidsey should certainly retract and Burger King should come to the table immediately.
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