Press Releases
Swarthmore Cuts Contract with Coca-Cola
united students against sweatshops
1150 17th St. NW Suite 300 Washington DC 20036; tel: 202-NOSWEAT; fax: 202-293-5308 www.studentsagainstsweatshops.org
Swarthmore Cuts Contract with Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola refuses to take responsibility for its participation in the execution of union leaders
SWARTHMORE, Pa.-Following an extensive student campaign, Swarthmore College has joined the growing list of colleges and universities that have discontinued all purchasing of Coca-Cola products in response to the company’s refusal to address allegations of cooperation with paramilitaries in the murder of 8 Colombian union leaders. In addition to their participation in the murder, kidnapping, and threatening of Colombian bottling workers and their families, Coca-Cola has been found responsible for intense environmental degradation in India, including exhausting local water supplies and selling contaminated beverages, and anti-union behavior that has including the beating, firing, and threatening of workers in Turkey, Indonesia, and Guatemala. The college’s decision was based on student pressure coming out of a growing international movement to hold Coca-Cola responsible for their refusal to adhere to internationally recognized human rights standards.
This action comes after a two-year campaign by student activists, during which the College put increasing pressure on Coke by voting in favor of a shareholder resolution calling for an independent investigation of Coke's practices in Colombia, and removing Coke products from some dining facilities in February 2006.
“This is a real victory after a drawn-out struggle,” said campaign member Camila Leiva ’09, “but what makes this victory so powerful is its place in a broader movement of students from many institutions working with the people in Colombia and India who are affected by Coke’s practices.” Campaign member Carrie Floyd ’07 agreed: “The Coca-Cola Company has allowed communities to be devastated in its search for profit. It is not the type of multi-national corporation we want to ally ourselves with. This movement is about taking responsibility for corporate practices—both domestically and internationally.”
In cutting its contract with Coca-Cola, Swarthmore joins a growing number of U.S. colleges and universities that have taken similar action, including New York University, Rutgers University, Hofstra University, and DePaul University. Numerous other academic institutions, both in the U.S. and abroad, are currently running campaigns to hold Coca-Cola responsible for their continued human and labor rights abuses around the world.
Contacts:
Ruth Schultz – (612) 388-2829 – rschult1@swarthmore.edu
Camila Leiva – (518) 366-8503 – cleiva1@swarthmore.edu
1150 17th St. NW Suite 300 Washington DC 20036; tel: 202-NOSWEAT; fax: 202-293-5308 www.studentsagainstsweatshops.org
Swarthmore Cuts Contract with Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola refuses to take responsibility for its participation in the execution of union leaders
SWARTHMORE, Pa.-Following an extensive student campaign, Swarthmore College has joined the growing list of colleges and universities that have discontinued all purchasing of Coca-Cola products in response to the company’s refusal to address allegations of cooperation with paramilitaries in the murder of 8 Colombian union leaders. In addition to their participation in the murder, kidnapping, and threatening of Colombian bottling workers and their families, Coca-Cola has been found responsible for intense environmental degradation in India, including exhausting local water supplies and selling contaminated beverages, and anti-union behavior that has including the beating, firing, and threatening of workers in Turkey, Indonesia, and Guatemala. The college’s decision was based on student pressure coming out of a growing international movement to hold Coca-Cola responsible for their refusal to adhere to internationally recognized human rights standards.
This action comes after a two-year campaign by student activists, during which the College put increasing pressure on Coke by voting in favor of a shareholder resolution calling for an independent investigation of Coke's practices in Colombia, and removing Coke products from some dining facilities in February 2006.
“This is a real victory after a drawn-out struggle,” said campaign member Camila Leiva ’09, “but what makes this victory so powerful is its place in a broader movement of students from many institutions working with the people in Colombia and India who are affected by Coke’s practices.” Campaign member Carrie Floyd ’07 agreed: “The Coca-Cola Company has allowed communities to be devastated in its search for profit. It is not the type of multi-national corporation we want to ally ourselves with. This movement is about taking responsibility for corporate practices—both domestically and internationally.”
In cutting its contract with Coca-Cola, Swarthmore joins a growing number of U.S. colleges and universities that have taken similar action, including New York University, Rutgers University, Hofstra University, and DePaul University. Numerous other academic institutions, both in the U.S. and abroad, are currently running campaigns to hold Coca-Cola responsible for their continued human and labor rights abuses around the world.
Contacts:
Ruth Schultz – (612) 388-2829 – rschult1@swarthmore.edu
Camila Leiva – (518) 366-8503 – cleiva1@swarthmore.edu
daniela – Fri, 2006 – 12 – 01 01:08
