In the News

Blood Chocolate, Bloody Valentine

Pacific Free Press
02/07/2008

Excerpt from article: 

If you buy chocolate this Valentine's Day, chances are much of it was made with child labor. West Africa produces 70% of the world's cocoa supply -- the raw ingredient of chocolate.

Fully 40% of the world's cocoa comes from one country, Cote D’Ivoire.
And in Cote D’Ivoire, grinding poverty, violence and child labor are epidemic.

This isn't supposed to be the case. For seven years there has been a much ballyhooed industrial agreement in place, designed to stop the exploitation of children in the chocolate industry.... 

 

You don't wear them or eat them, but 'organic' flowers are growing

International Herald Tribune
02/05/2008

Bonny Doon Garden, a flower kiosk here, had signs posted all around it last week for Valentine's Day, but the sales pitch wasn't just about romance.

A bucket held red and fuchsia anemones that were "organic." Ecuadorean roses the size of baseballs were "certified." Roses from a nearby farm were "locally grown."

Was the kiosk selling flowers or lettuce?

To Pull a Thorn From the Side of the Planet

New York Times
02/03/2008

THE Bonny Doon Garden Company, a downtown flower kiosk here, had signs posted all around it last week for Valentine’s Day, but the sales pitch wasn’t just about romance.

A bucket held red and fuchsia anemones that were “organic.” Ecuadorean roses the size of baseballs were “certified.” Roses from a nearby farm were “locally grown.”

Was the kiosk selling flowers, or lettuce?

Mistreatment of Child Workers by Super Bowl Advertiser Bridgestone-Firestone Needs Scrutiny

Foreign Policy in Focus
02/02/2008

By Emira Woods

After twenty-six years of chaos and war, Liberia, on the shores of West Africa, is reemerging as a beacon of hope in a difficult region. A peaceful democratic transition brought Africa's first woman president, a successful UN peacekeeping effort, and a wave of repatriates eager to build for the future.

One glaring blemish on this positive picture is the condition of workers engaged with Liberia's largest employer, Bridgestone-Firestone.

Liberia: A Gulag of Misery

Z Magazine
02/01/2008

By Dan Read

Like many nations in Africa, Liberia has a sad tale to tell. After an optimistic founding in the 1820s by former slaves from the Americas, the country has since felt the brunt of two civil wars, the last of which only just ended. The nation is now largely dependent on foreign investment and lacks any kind of economic base outside of the export of raw materials such as timber, iron, and rubber. As a result, unemployment is at a staggering 85 percent.

Child Labor Still Widespread

The Charleston Gazette
01/31/2008

About 140 million Americans are likely to watch Sunday's Super Bowl pitting the New York Giants against the New England Patriots. TV ads during the sports extravaganza cost millions because they reach multitudes.

This year, Bridgestone, the "official tire" of the National Football League, will spend heavily to sponsor the Super Bowl's halftime show.

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