Protesters march for Florida farm workers
Lawrence residents visit local Burger Kings, demand better conditions for coalition
The Coalition of Immokalee Workers in Florida wants higher wages for its members. Because Burger King is responsible for the workers’ wages, local opposed residents, including KU students, protested with signs Saturday at the restaurant’s Lawrence locations.
Monday, August 27th, 2007
They marched through Lawrence with tomato signs that said, “Justice,” and signs that resembled the Burger King trademark but said “Exploitation King.” One protestor even dressed as the Burger King himself, except his costume’s face showed an angry smile. Lawrence Fair Food, Kansas Mutual Aid, and the Lawrence Coalition for Peace and Justice organized Saturday’s event, the March for Fair Food, to benefit the Coalition of Immokalee Workers in Florida.
The march started at 9:30 a.m. at the Burger King located at 1100 N. Third St. Spectators honked and held up peace signs to show support for the group as it marched to the Burger Kings on Sixth Street and 23rd Street. The group delivered a letter that explained the reason for the protest, to the manager of each restaurant. The letter demanded that Burger King increase the wages of workers by one cent per pound of tomatoes.
Photo by Lisa Lipovac
One of the protesters participating in Saturday's march holds up a sign demanding a one-cent wage increase for farm workers in Florida who work for Burger King.
The marchers chanted, “What do we want? Fair Food! When do we want it? Now!” the group consisted of a combination of students and Lawrence community members. Each protestor had his or her own reason for why the march was significant.
Rachel Raya, Hutchinson sophomore, said she participated in the march as community outreach for her sorority Sigma Lambda Gamma, the largest Latina-based sorority in the U.S.
“It’s important to us because of the significance to our culture,” Raya said. “We’ve done similar things for community awareness and really enjoyed them.”
To other protestors, the march was about showing support for the farm workers in Florida.
“We’re expected to be mindless consumers,” Cori Fischer-Hoffman, Philadelphia graduate student, said. “We should ask, ‘Where does this food come from?’”
Gerardo Reyes, a member of the CIW, accompanied the group on the march. Reyes’ family still lives in Mexico, but he said his co-workers and friends in Florida supported him on his trip from Florida to Kansas. With the help of a translator, Reyes said he wanted fair wages for the workers. He said the wages had been frozen at the same rate since 1978. He also said the workers had no benefits, contract or protection.
“Justice must be an ingredient for a company that profits off of the misery of its workers,” Reyes said.
As reported in Friday’s The University Daily Kansan, Keva Silversmith, Burger King’s vice president of corporation communication, said the restaurants had negotiated with the CIW for the past few years. Silversmith said that the coalition had requested Burger King write a check to the organization, but that the company had declined.
A manager who worked at all three Lawrence Burger Kings would not give his name, or comment on the march. When protestors handed him the letter, he thanked them and requested that they didn’t come into the restaurants.
The group then requested assistance from the Lawrence Police Department. Police officers rode bicycles and walked alongside the group, and drove to the Burger King locations. Sgt. Michael Monroe said the police had to respect both the marchers and the restaurants. He said the march had been peaceful at the Sixth Street location.
“They made the agreement to stay on the city sidewalks while they march,” Monroe said. “When they deliver the letter we think it’s safer to do it outside the restaurant.”
The march ended at the 23rd Street Burger King, where protestors sat on the restaurant’s lawn and ate free hamburgers and veggie burgers provided by the Ecumenical Christian Ministries.
Reverend Thad Holcombe of Ecumenical Christian Ministries, said that he was pleased with the turnout and with the work done to bring about cooperation between Burger King and farm workers.
“It is important for one group not to be in a position of power over another,” Holcombe said. “We must sit at the same table.”
— Edited by Dianne Smith
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