we need to be contacting aldermen, not reading, so i don't know why i've compiled these recent emails about Wal-Mart for you, but i did.
michael Logan Square/Avondale, 30th Ward 4 emails below. the 3rd one contains a sample letter. 1. From: Omer and Sheri Khan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Mon, 17 May 2004 20:56:15 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [LoganSquare] To Wal-Mart or not to Wal-Mart? I wanted to pass on this link to a great article on the ethics of Wal-mart. It helped to convince me! http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/ethicalperspectives/wal-mart.html -Sheri Khan Santosha Yoga Studio of Logan Square http://www.LSYOGA.com 773.394.YOGA 2519 N California Ave Chicago 60647 ---------------------> 2. From: Emile Schepers, [EMAIL PROTECTED] (of the People's Weekly World, newspaper of the Communist Party USA) Date: Fri, 14 May 2004 16:08:28 EDT HELP PUT THE BRAKES ON WAL MART! please re-post widely As you probably know, Wal Mart is planning two big stores within the Chicago city limits: One at 83rd and Seward, the other on North and Kilpatrick, which is between Kostner and Cicero. You are also no doubt aware that this is NOT good news. If one looks beyond the joys of bargain shopping, the Wal Mart chain is lowering, not raising, living standards by its modus operandi. In other areas where Wal Mart has come it, the results have been a NET LOSS of jobs, because they drive out of business many stores which employ more people, in aggregate, than Wal Mart eventually employs. Further, Wal Mart's ruthless treatment of its work force leads to more poverty and more social welfare expenditures for the cities in which it sets up shop (how this would play out on the West Side of Chicago is documented in a recent study by the University of Illinois Center for Urban Economic Development, readable on line at: http://www.uic.edu/cuppa/uicued/Publications/RECENT/wal-martreport.pdf Though Wal Mart claims they will bring in 250 new jobs to the West Side, the U.of Illinois study shows that there would actually be a NET LOSS of 65 jobs, and other negative effects, as has happened in hundreds of communities around the USA. Union-busters par excellence, the Wal Mart folks pay an average of $8.23 an hour to their sales staff, two dollars an hour less than the average for retail sales in our area (higher figures they themselves cite are possibly pulled out of the air; more likely created by averaging in management salaries, creating an "apples versus oranges" situation). Further, they make their health insurance so expensive (because of large co-payment requirements) that many Wal Mart employees who get sick end up having their health care paid for by the taxpayers. Wal Mart is seen as a drag on wages, benefits and working conditions for retail workers not only in the United States but worldwide. And in many areas they have added full supermarkets to their operations. In Chicago, this would undercut the wages, benefits and jobs of unionized workers in Jewel/Osco and Dominicks, and set off labor strife in the supermarket industry similar to the strike just concluded in California, because these chains would no doubt try to avoid being undercut by Wal Mart by asking for give-backs from their employees. Wal Mart has inundated Chicago with a slick propaganda campaign, and has enlisted churches, community groups and especially the mass media into the effort. They have more money than any other corporation on the planet, and they are not slow to spread it around to win themselves some friends. They have put out false information about their health care benefit program and about what they pay their workers, e.g. in one of Steve Chapman's columns this week. Worst of all, they have put out the word that those of us who are critical of Wal Mart, whose practices exploit and hurt minority workers more than anybody, are somehow "racists". They have particularly attacked the union which has had the national responsibility of trying to organize Wal Mart, United Food and Commercial Workers, AFL-CIO (here the main local involved is 881). They have tried to confuse the matter by associating UFCW 881 with the past racially exclusionary practices of craft unions, which could not be further from the truth. UFCW, in point of fact, never a craft union, is the product of the merger of the old Amalgamated Meat-Cutters and Butcher Workmen with another union. The Amalgamated Meatcutters played an outstanding progressive role in the Civil Rights movement, and out of their ranks came some very valuable African-American labor and political leaders, including the late Congressman Charlie Hayes and labor and religious activist Addie Wyatt (who is actively involved in the anti-Wal Mart struggle in Chicago). And Wal Mart is hardly a minority owned company: The five main surviving members of Wal Mart founder Sam Walton have among them a fortune of $100 billion dollars, mostly gained via Wal Mart's ruthless business practices. WHAT IS HAPPENING IN CHICAGO? Labor and its allies, including Jobs With Justice, ACORN, South Austin Community Coalition, the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and others, have been trying to convince the Chicago City Council to DENY THE ZONING PERMITS for Wal Mart unless they will agree to a list of items ranging from not opposing unionization of their workers to contributing to community social welfare funds. At the City Council meeting of Wednesday, May 5, the VOTE WAS DELAYED until Wednesday, May 26. What is needed now is for all people who understand the negative impact of Wal Mart's business practices to do the following: 1. MOST URGENT: Lobby your alderman to vote NO on Wal Mart. This can be done by (a) organizing a delegation of your neighbors to go and meet with your alderman (best way) , or (b) contacting your alderman by phone and / or fax and/or e-mail (next best).. 2. Put the issue of Wal Mart on the agenda of your community organization in the time between now and May 26. There is an excellent documentary video on Wal Mart made by Bill Moyers' NOW program; and there are speakers who can come out and talk about the situation. If you want to have such a presentation, e-mail me back with your phone # and I will offer to try to arrange it. 3. The People's Weekly World newspaper is printing a flyer on the Wal Mart issue, English and Spanish, to distribute in areas affected by the Wal Mart plans. If you can help us distribute this flyer, please so indicate. Jobs with Justice also has a flyer on this. ------------------------------------> 3. From: "Chicago Jobs with Justice" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Wed, 12 May 2004 01:56:01 GMT Subject: Take Action Now! Justice at Wal-Mart Dear JwJ Activist, Chicago Must Demand a Community Benefits Agreement from Wal-Mart On May 1st, more than 300 people attended a Workers' Rights Board hearing on Wal-Mart at St. Sabina's church on Chicago's South Side. We heard powerful testimony on Wal-Mart's effects on workers and the community. On May 5th, the Chicago Alliance for Justice at Wal-Mart, of which Jobs with Justice is a key member, gathered over 200 activists at the Chicago City Council meeting. In a stunning victory, four aldermen decided to put both Wal-Mart proposals on hold until May 26th, believing that Wal-Mart's predatory practices merited further consideration. With your help, Chicago Aldermen can make the right decision! Use this Action Alert to fax or email your alderman and urge them to reject Wal-Mart unless the company agrees to sign a Community Benefits Agreement. Also, please call your alderman and make your voice heard. Save the date of Wednesday, May 26, to come to City Council and make our presence felt. You can take action via the web at: http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/chiwalmart/836ugd448wenw --sample letter-- Demand Justice at Wal-Mart Dear Alderman __________________, As you contemplate voting on the two proposed Wal-Mart sites for the city of Chicago on May 26th, I urge you to demand the highest standard of accountability for this corporation. There is mounting evidence from across the country that Wal-Mart's renowned low prices come at a steep price for American workers and communities: * Wal-Mart has a corporate policy that prohibits and often fires workers as they seek union representation. * Wal-Mart's presence in a community triggers a "race to the bottom" in which competitors are forced to mimic its practices by lowering wages and cutting benefits. * Wal-Mart forces local small businesses to shutdown as they are unable to compete against low prices acquired under unfair and questionable business practices. * Because Wal-Mart underpays and provides inadequate health care benefits for its workers, many are receiving public assistance. In the state of Georgia it has been revealed that many children in the state's child health care program are children of Wal-Mart workers. * Wal-Mart threatens manufacturing jobs in the United States when its suppliers have to outsource or move production offshore in order come up with the cheapest possible product for Wal-Mart. In view of these disturbing facts, I urge you to vote for a Community Benefits Agreement that sets a minimum standard of conduct for Wal-Mart. As the world's largest and most profitable retailer, Wal-Mart must set the standard for wages and benefits or other companies will be forced to lower their standards in order to compete. Chicago has a long history of demanding corporate accountability, as exemplified by passage of the Living Wage Ordinance. The Community Benefits Agreement is the only way the City of Chicago can bring accountability to Wal-Mart. This agreement will, at a minimum, commit Wal-Mart to: a) pay a living wage and offer affordable health benefits to its workers; b) hire a high percentage of its workers from the community; c) not interfere with the right of workers to organize; d) disavow predatory pricing schemes that undercut local businesses. I am confident that upon review of all the facts surrounding Wal-Mart, you will act to safeguard the interests of the people of Chicago by rejecting the Wal-Mart proposal, unless it requires that the company sign a Community Benefits Agreement. Sincerely, cc: Mayor Richard Daley ----------- If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for Chicago Jobs with Justice at: http://www.unionvoice.org/chicagojwj/join.html?r=J7alxv71W7FAE ----------------------> 4. oops, too late for this, but interesting: Cafe Society (Public Square) Update: Wal-Mart May 11 - 14, 2004. Is Wal-Mart Good or Bad for Chicago? It is indisputable that Wal-Mart is incredibly popular among consumers. We shop at Wal-Mart. One out of three babies is wearing a diaper purchased at a Wal-Mart. The company generates eight times more revenue than Microsoft. If it were its own economy, Wal-Mart would rank 30th in the world. Wal-Mart has been given awards for being the one of the most philanthropic and most admired companies in the U.S. In 1992, Sam Walton, the company's founder, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George Bush. Other recipients include John F. Kennedy, Mother Teresa, Cesar Chavez, Ella Fitzgerald, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Jonas Salk. So, why is there such debate in City Hall over whether to make the necessary zoning changes that would allow the stores to open on the West and South side of Chicago? Wal-Mart will potentially generate over $110 million in revenue, $3.4 million in property taxes and create 700 new jobs in economically struggling neighborhoods. And, most importantly, it will offer low priced goods and services. Why do so many people feel that Wal-Mart is evil? Opponents claim the company abuses labor laws, uses contract workers illegally, discriminates against women, and generates a high cost for the benefit of low prices. In April, California voters rejected a Wal-Mart plan in Inglewood after reviewing studies that claimed the company is actually destructive to the communities it opens stores in. How can these two realities exist at the same time? How can it be so successful when it seems that so many people hate it? What is the bottom line when it comes to claims that Wal-Mart does not pay enough to its employees for them to shop at the store? If you have moral objections to the store, but are struggling to get by, do you shop there anyway because they are the most affordable? Join us and tell us how you feel about Wal-Mart. TUESDAY 7-8 p.m., Intelligentsia Coffee, 3123 N. Broadway WEDNESDAY 7-8 p.m., Buzz Café at the Oak Park Public Library, 834 Lake Street, Oak Park LOCATION CHANGE: The meeting at Café Boost has been moved to a new location, CAFE SOUL at 1301 W. HOLLYWOOD AVE, 7-8 p.m.* THURSDAY 7-8 p.m., Caffe De Luca, 1721 N. Damen BR 7-8 p.m., Valois, 1518 East 53rd Street FRIDAY 5-6 p.m., Ron's Barber Shop, 6041 W. North Avenue, Oak Park Special Guest Jennifer Koehler, President of Chicago NOW, will be a guest speaker for the Cafe Society that meets at Caffe De Lucca. Other guests at various locations are to be announced next week. Readings on Wal-Mart Nobody Neutral on Wal-Mart proposals http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=ercoi9n6.yw5dczn6.eqwtj9n6.8ovswyn6.226&p=http%3A %2F%2Fwww.chicagotribune.com%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fchi-0405040214may04%2C1%2C1 986495.story * How Wal-Mart is Remaking our World http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=ercoi9n6.yw5dczn6.hqwtj9n6.8ovswyn6.226&p=http%3A %2F%2Fwww.alternet.org%2Fprint.html%3FStoryID%3D12962 * Los Angeles Organizations Applaud Wal-Mart's Local Economic Impact and Grass-Roots Efforts http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=ercoi9n6.yw5dczn6.fqwtj9n6.8ovswyn6.226&p=http%3A %2F%2Fwww.estradausa.com%2Fmr%2Fwalmr101502.htm * How do you rate? http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=ercoi9n6.yw5dczn6.iqwtj9n6.8ovswyn6.226&p=http%3A %2F%2Fwww.hiretough.com%2Ffeatured_article.html * Testimony from women is gathered to make the case for a class-action suit http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=ercoi9n6.yw5dczn6.gqwtj9n6.8ovswyn6.226&p=http%3A %2F%2Fwww.ufcw135.org%2Fwal%2Fwal_litigation_over_sex_discrim2.htm * Wal-Mart Wages Don't Support Wal-Mart Workers http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=ercoi9n6.yw5dczn6.jqwtj9n6.8ovswyn6.226&p=http%3A %2F%2Fwww.alternet.org%2Fstory.html%3FStoryID%3D16111 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] voice: 312.993.0682 web: http://www.thepublicsquare.org The Public Square | 117 N. 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