Posted on 08/24/2013 1:19:57 PM PDT by Tailgunner Joe
A group of African-American activists, community leaders and college professors are calling for the boycott of Koch Industries as a way to honor slain Florida teen Trayvon Martin, pushing for continued dialogue on race relations nationwide.
While speaking at an event titled “From Emmett Till to Trayvon Martin: A Town Hall Meeting on Black Bodies and American Racism” at Washington, D.C.’s Woolly Mammoth Theater, a panel of prominent African-Americans gathered to examine ways to combat the racism that they say led to George Zimmerman’s acquittal last month. When asked about the failed boycotts of places like Disney World in Orlando, Fla., one panelist revealed her efforts to combat the proponents of “Stand Your Ground” laws.
“We’re asking people not to buy from that company that created those ‘Stand Your Ground’ laws,” said the Rev. Carolyn Boyd, an adjunct pastor at Plymouth Congregation United Church of Christ in Washington, D.C. ”Y’all know that company with those people, the Kochs. Paper towels and all those products that we buy — Walmart — all the time, that make those people rich and make us poor.”
The pastor directed the audience to stop purchasing things like Angel Soft toilet paper, Brawny paper towels and Vanity Fair napkins — all subsidiaries of Koch Industries — in an initiative called “No-Buy Fridays.”
“…We begin to elevate our power to say, ‘No, I’m not buying your products because you’re harming the black community,’” Boyd said.
The town hall, sponsored by Rock the Vote, among other organizations, addressed concerns from members of the African-American community and featured a panel of six speakers: Boyd, Louisa Davis, Jessica Frances Dukes, Dr. Dennis Rogers, Dawn Ursula and Gabriel Rojo. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) was also in attendance for a brief period of time.
The group acted to facilitate a dialogue on the actions of Zimmerman — the 29-year-old Hispanic man who shot and killed Martin, an African-American — and called Martin’s death the catalyst for a “renewed civil rights movement.”
“To me, it’s a continuation of a tough conversation … that puts more to our argument that there can never be justice on stolen land,” said Rogers, an assistant professor of political science at Bowie State University.
While many on the panel believed Zimmerman killed Martin because of his race, others saw it as a failure of the justice system, faulting the jury’s inability to see past Martin’s black skin and Zimmerman’s white complexion. The six-person jury consisted of five white women and one Hispanic woman.
“Emmett Till was a young prince who broke our hearts years ago, but now, I guess what I want to say is I don’t want to blame George Zimmerman,” said Davis, an adjunct professor at Montgomery College. “I want us to look at the system that let him free and not make it personal … It’s the propagation of fear and we have to take our legal system back from fear.”
Following Zimmerman’s acquittal, many African-Americans took to the streets of major metropolitical cities nationwide in protest. The Rev. Al Sharpton called on the Department of Justice to bring up civil rights charges against Zimmerman. And even President Obama spoke about his disappointment surrounding the not guilty verdict, saying Martin could have been him.
Still, many remain standing in solidarity with Martin. Earlier this month, Ebony magazine unveiled four tribute covers to the Florida teen, one featuring Martin’s family and three featuring well known African-American men and their sons and the words “We Are Trayvon.” Additionally, Oprah Winfrey spoke openly about the case with theGrio’s Chris Witherspoon, saying Martin paralleled Till.
Amen to that.
I am sure someone must have said it, but............
YOU CAN’T FIX STUPID!
Koch Ind are in the oil, gas and petrochemical / pharmaceutical business .
Consider the possibilities
Koch provides gasoline and oil for cars and the chemicals for gun powder
That means the boycott will put a stop to drive by shootings and shooting in general. I'm all for it. Even better, if they get real serious about this boycotting of Koch gasoline there is another hidden benefit. There is absolutely no way car jackers could know if Koch gasoline was in the tanks of the cars they were jacking and it would be out of bounds to jack a car with Koch gasoline in the tank. This could really put a crimp in car jackings as well .
Koch makes the chemicals the hood rats use for the production of methamphetamine. This shuts down their meth labs which takes dangerous drugs off the street, reduces the risk of the meth lab burning down buildings (especially apartment buildings) where they set up the labs, and reduces the the pollution caused by illegal dumping of toxic waste byproducts of meth labs. Icall that the gift that keeps on giving
They can cut off the use of Koch natural gas for heating and cooking. They don't pay for the gas, we do via government subsidized payment of utility bills which will reduce welfare entitlement spending . Im down with that too.
Plenty of examples if how a Koch boycott on the part of these losers is benefit to society in general.
I have absolutely not a clue in the world how Koch Ind and the Zimmerman trial are connected but I sure can get behind their boycott since it is such a great win fir the rest of society
When something is illogical, explaining such illogic is an effort in futility. My best guess is that since the Koch Brothers are the current evil conservative shibboleths of the nutroots of the left, for these fellow travelers, it gives them a target that they don't have to find. Typical mind job really, totally reflective of their goals and level of intelligence!
I won’t buy Malt liquor, arizona tea, skittles, no afro blowout kits, or any product endorsed by any black person.
Madeia is out too no matter how funny, BET,Own,Jet,Ebony and anything I forgot or don’t know about.
I will arm my wife and myself to protect from any black thug trying to trayvon my family or myself. No blacks within 25 feet of my family! Gibbs’ three shot method will be employed. Head, body and big toe. One is bound to stop them.
If needed I will only speak to my lawyer.
I will not buy anything sold by blacks even if they are only at the checkout. I will find a white person.
Is this racist?
/sarc/
I have a message for Rev. Carolyn Boyd, Louisa Davis, Jessica Frances Dukes, Dr. Dennis Rogers, Dawn Ursula and Gabriel Rojo. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton: “shut the hell up you filthy lowlife racist scumbags!”
Okay, I feel better now.
Unfortunately we’re seeing up close and personal the faces of the lunatic fringe that depends on half of the nation to provide their ‘living.’
God bless the Koch brothers! They should be cherished as two of the few Conservatives left in America!
Many of these idiots don’t know what Trayvon was all about and wouldn’t have a clue as to who M. L. King was.
What can I say....but great minds think a like... :)
If America doesn’t meet your expectations after spending hundreds of thousands of lives and trillions of dollars on you..... there’s the f’n boat back to Affica, adios MF.
So, the racists are meeting in D.C., huh? In the Woolly Mammoth Theater?
You can’t out-stupid or out-lie a Progressive .... they are professionals!
George Zimmerman
George Zimmerman mentored black children for free.
George Zimmerman protested the SPD’s lack of interest in prosecuting a guy that beat a homeless black man.
George Zimmerman looked in on neighbors who had been terrorized by home invaders.
George Zimmerman volunteered to spend time watching out for his neighbors.
George Zimmerman helped rescue a family trapped in an overturned truck.
Trayvon Martin
Suspended from school for fighting a school bus driver.
Suspended from school for a baggie with pot dust and stolen jewelery in his backpack.
Frequently engaged in Fight Club type street fighting.
Wrote on the internet about getting ‘codine’ to make some ‘fire ass lean.’
Posted pics of himself smoking pot, sporting gold grills, flipping the bird, holding wads of cash, making gang signs and a gun he was selling.
Posted explicit remarks about what he wanted to do to ‘hos.’
Posted to a friend that his friend should kill someone the friend had a problem with.
Posted conversations about the fights he had been in including the fight with the bus driver. No regrets he was proud and boastful of it all.
****************************************************************
Zimmerman was an alter boy when he was a young man...
Why do people from Nigeria and Tanganyika care about this?
That is the only possible conclusion to draw from this article.
So, are they going to stay out of Walmart’s now?
Don’t forget lacrosse!
Martin Luther King, Jr. must be rolling in his grave. I don’t really know much about him, but if he wasn’t an out-and-out commie like Obama, et al. he must be horrified at what has happened to the black community since his death and to the mind-numbing stupidity spewing from the minds and mouths of his “heirs”.
Georgia-Pacific paper products. Didn't even know that Koch owned them.
But any boycott against those brands is going to be meaningless. In paper products, G-P is primarily a private label business. Those brands may account for 2-3% of their total volume. If they disappeared altogether, there'd be no appreciable impact on the company.
And that's without considering their industrial paper business...and lumber products.
The boycott is a product of ignorance. Not surprising when it comes from the mind of a politician...
Theater of the absurd. As I posted before. With their culture ignorance and plain stupidity has no bounds.
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