Summary
This hasn't stopped anti-Coke sentiment on many U.S. college campuses in recent months. Already, 23 schools, including the University of Michigan, Rutgers University in New Jersey and New York University, have not renewed their contracts with Coke, suspended the sale of all Coke products or removed their products from campuses entirely. In January, an anti-Coke editorial ran in the student newspaper at Atlanta's Emory University, sometimes referred to as "Coca-Cola University" because of its historic ties to the company.
Natalia Fajardo, a UVM student and Colombia native, is a CRC organizer. "It matters to me because it is an issue of moral responsibility," she says. Fajardo point out that UVM's "Common Ground" statement of values affirms, "We are a community that unites against all forms of injustice and we are striving to become an environmental leader in the nation." She adds, "We should not do business with a company that is clearly committing both environmental and social abuses throughout the world."Pablo Largacha is director of public affairs and communications with Coca-Cola in Atlanta. Also a native of Colombia, he admits there's a "valid and legitimate cry for help" from some labor activists about that country's ongoing spasms of violence, which have claimed more than 100,000 lives in the last 60 years. However, he asserts that some activists, including union organizers in the United States, have "attached their cause to the Coca-Cola trademark" in an "opportunistic effort" to gain sympathy and international media attention.See the full content of this document
Extract
Students Campaign to Kick Coke Off Campus
BURLINGTON - It's the real thing. That is, not the soft drink but the Coca-Cola Company's record of environmental and human rights abuses, allege student activists at the University of Vermont. They're calling on the school's administration to break its exclusive contract with Coca-Cola, and asking students to boycott all Coke products until the company changes ...
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