boycott of the month: the coca-cola company

It seems that a group called the United Students Against Sweatshops are calling March 27th the "International Day of Action Against Coca-Cola", so why not make March your first boycott? Yes, this blog only started yesterday, so it'll only be a short boycott, but hey, don't worry, we'll boycott them again some time.

The Coca-Cola Company is responsible for many human rights violations around the world and have engaged in many anti-union activities. Moreover, they have been penetrating into schools with their beverages and marketing. Many universities have already removed Coca-Cola products from their campus as a way of protesting their activities. On December 2005, New York University became the largest private university to boycott Coca-Cola products. Here are some reasons to boycott Coca-Cola. Not that there are many other reasons that I suggest you look into (e.g. human rights violations in India, Turkey, etc.)

Colombia

Colombia is not the only country The Coca-Cola Company has committed atrocities in, but is perhaps one of the most widely known one. This has to do with a bottling company that the company uses in Colombia, which has been sued in a lawsuit for its crimes. According to some reports (and again, I'm not an expert, so do your own research), The Coca-Cola Company has been responsible for contracting paramilitary forces to silence, torture and kill trade union leaders in Colombia.

Health risks

Recent reports have shown that certain sodas contain a higher level of benzene, a carcinogen linked to leukemia, than water. While drinking water have to follow strict guidelines on benzene levels, sodas do not, and so companies are allowed to sell them around the world. A non-diet can of soda also contains 12 teaspoons of sugar, which can lead to many health risks associated with heart disease and diabetes. Kids who drink too much soda also tends to drink less milk, leading to risk of osteoporosis and kidney stones.

Bottled water

Bottled water has been almost ubiquitous in our communities now, and not just in the United States but in many other parts of the world (at least those I've been to). The general impression is that bottled water, because they come in pretty bottles and fancy labels, are cleaner and taste better than tap water. Not true! While tap water is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), bottled water is regulated by the FDA (Food & Drug Administration), which applies EPA guidelines selectively. Moreover, while there's a huge staff of people overlooking tap water in the EPA, there is barely enough in the FDA to overlook bottled waters. As such, many bottled water companies often have much higher levels of toxic chemicals like arsenic and bacteria than regular tap water. On top of that, bottled water are harmful to the environment, increasing the amount of trash.

How to boycott

Remember that The Coca-Cola Company makes not just its flagship products. For a complete list of its products, check out its entire brand list. If you can't be bothered with the list, just take a good look whatever beverage you're buying, and it'll often tell you whether it's a Coca-Cola product. You are also do things such as sending petitions to The Coca-Cola Company board members or passing out flyers in your school, college and community.

By the way, I always encourage people also to do their own research and make up their own minds. If you can, talk to others who use Coca-Cola products, or even just sodas or bottled water in general, to educate them about the costs of these products. I posted a link of a speech by a union activist speaking out against the company that you can check out.

And finally, if you want to communicate with me, make corrections, suggestions, or if you think Coke is great, feel free to email me.

P.S. I was so disgusted in my research that I've upgraded The Coca-Cola Company to my permanent boycott list. Lucky them!

Further reading

United Students Against Sweatshops is leading a campaign this month to protest against Coca-Cola.

Killer Coke is a comprehensive website detailing the crimes that The Coca-Cola Company has committed.

St. Cloud Times has an op-ed piece on bottled water.

The Sierra Club has an informative brochure on the costs of bottled water.