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Update: The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) has a complete update on the story at their website, and is asking its members to vote if they should stop using Verizon phones. Please visit their site and offer your support. They did a fabulous job in keeping attention on Verizon's involvement in Don Blankenship's Labor Day rally. Also, see this comment by One Citizen on press coverage of Verizon's 'apology.'
A few days late and a thousand dollars short. That's how I'd describe the belated victory over Verizon Wireless. I mean, I appreciate the sentiment, Lowell, but really, this embarrassing episode for your company easily could have been avoided.
Rob lays out what happened (emphasis mine).
Verizon Wireless, which markets itself as environmentally friendly, clearly made a mistake affiliating its brand with this anti-"green" rally. But instead of heeding customer complaints by withdrawing its sponsorship, company officials first tried to play clueless about the overt political aspect of the event, and then stubbornly stayed the course for fear of angering the coal crowd.
Not only did they play clueless, but along the way they even managed to say a few offensive things about environmentalists, too.
Well, yesterday the CEO of Verizon Wireless, Mr. Lowell "Mea Culpa" McAdam, offered a public apology -- in the form of a letter to the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the groups that organized around this issue.
In an effort to "set the record straight," McAdams explains that Verizon Wireless' sponsorship was not meant as an expression of support for the coal industry's political agenda. He insists that the company does not support mountaintop removal coal mining, nor does it oppose federal climate legislation. He goes on to clarify that Verizon Wireless "supports the goals of policy makers who are committed to reducing carbon emissions and protecting the environment." McAdams then takes the opportunity to tout Verizon's corporate commitment to sustainability.
So there you have it: Verizon Wireless' belated apology for violating its stated environmental values, undermining its credibility as a "green" company, and breaking its trust with customers.
Kudos to each and everyone of you who contacted the company to voice your views and concerns about the situation. Looks like Verizon Wireless heard you...now.
There are many reasons why sponsoring Don Blankenship's Labor Day event was a bad idea for Verizon Wireless--environmental issues were the ones that got traction nationally.
Finally, a huge congratulations and major kudos to everyone who has been covered this story so effectively at West Virginia Blue.
Local (WV) media reported that "tens of thousands" showed up at the Friends of America Labor Day fabrication fest without even coming close to disputing the blatant corporate lie that over 70,000 had turned out. Worse still, the corporate-owned media seemed to go completely out of its way to misreport the reality of exactly why coal company CEO Donald Blankenship threw at least a million bucks at his little Mingo County dog-and-pony show.
While coal magnate Don Blankenship pledged his allegiance to his corporation on a bleak surface mine site, the Color Guard of VFW Post 5578 lead the flag salute at beautiful John Slack Memorial Park in Racine, WV. By the way, Don, Title 4 Section 8 paragraph d of the US Code clearly states that the flag should never be used as wearing apparel.
photo by One Citizen - Charleston, WV
While chickenhawk Tod "Crusty Pants" Nugent was paid big bucks to whine into a corporate-owned microphone about his precious 2nd amendment right to shoot raccoons on a nearly barren surface mine quarry in Mingo County, WV, just miles away UMWA volunteers rolled out a light artillery piece which had been left by the federal government for coal companies to use as a "bargaining tool" against AMERICAN miners who'd struggled for basic human rights in the Appalachian coalfields for years.
photo by One Citizen - Charleston, WV
photo by One Citizen - Charleston, WV "The people who came here -- they did it because of what's in their heart and not what's in their pocket books," said UMWA President Cecil Roberts. "These people are committed to the United Mine Workers and the principles of organized labor."
photo by One Citizen - Charleston, WV The real Labor Day celebration in Racine was truly a family event.
But at Blankenship's Friends of Massey charade he and other outside agitators lied profusely and repeatedly cussed through loudspeakers about how Cap and Trade regs would threaten jobs, when the truth is that no anti-pollution laws have ever, or will ever, cost more mining jobs or more lives than mountaintop removal. Plus, those Cap and Trade laws wouldn't even apply if coal was as "clean" as all of Donny's deep pocket "Friends" have been advertising! So just why are they spending billions trying to convince America that coal is "clean" instead of paying scientists to figure out ways to make it clean? And just why is Blankenship blowing all this cash on a lie-fest while hiring teams of corporate lawyers beat out folks whose lives he's ruined by polluting?
The fact is that anti-pollution regs which could stop mountaintop removal altogether would actually put more folks to work if only our political leaders were willing to enforce them.
photo by One Citizen - Charleston, WV
At WV's real Labor Day celebration the emphasis was on health care benefits.
For what it's worth, in the comments on one of their videos MBN estimated 10,000 to 20,000 in attendance. (There were never any lines for concessions or port-a-potties.) I'm yet to see a picture that looked like more than that. If there was really 50,000 or more people there the area by the stage would have been packed.
Fortunately, Van Jones will have no problem finding a new job. Unfortunately, if his vision to diversify our economy is diminished in the process, it will be even harder for laid off coal miners to find new jobs.
Today is our celebration of the Labor Movement and the value of the workers who built and continue to maintain America. As a holiday, it has an interesting political history and looking at the 127 years it has been celebrated we see stark changes that have been made in the relationship between the government and labor.
By Clem Guttata - Originally published on Monday, Sept 3, 2007
David Sirota offers his "must-reads for anyone wishing to understand unions and the labor movement":
- Labor's Untold Story: Put out by the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America, this is like a bible of the labor movement. It's been around for years, and remains one of the most important works out there. You'll read this book and realize what a sham your high school history books really are - because as the title says, this story truly is untold.
- Which Side Are You On?: One of the best books I've ever read, both for the sheer talent of its author and for the journey it takes the reader on. Author Thomas Geoghegan (who I sincerely believe is one of the top 5 writers in America today) draws on his experience as a labor lawyer to show us through his experiences exactly what challenges face the labor movement in the modern era. Geoghegan's The Secret Lives of Citizens is an unofficial sequel to this book - and it is just as good.
- A People's History of the United States: I almost didn't include this Howard Zinn masterpiece in this list, just because it is so well known that I initially felt that I didn't even have to mention it because everyone knows it.
- The Selling of Free Trade: John R. MacArthur's book is a page-turning look at how labor's agenda is regularly run over and crushed by both parties in Washington. For those who think people like Bill Clinton, Rahm Emanuel, Bill Richardson and the Clintonite machine was/is friends to American workers, reading this book might make you realize how wrong that conclusion really is. Slightly more outdated - but equally compelling - is Bill Greider's Who Will Tell the People?
- John L. Lewis - A Biography: Lewis was probably the most important labor leader in the last 100 years, building up the United Mine Workers into a powerhouse during the 20th century. I have only just started this book, but I have read enough to know it gives you a good sense of why organized labor has been so important to all the things we take for granted now (say, for instance, the weekend) - and why it is no coincidence that the right-wing war on the middle class has accelerated at the very same time organized labor has declined in membership.
Wow. This has really picked up steam this week. Via Sparki at Its Getting Hot In Here, I see that over 20 groups are now calling on Verizon Wireless to drop its support Blankenship's labor day rally.
For anyone new to the story, you can read our major coverage of the rally in these stories:
Here's a copy of today's press release and their letter to Verizon Wireless:
Groups Ask That Verizon Wireless Withdraw Support of Controversial, Climate-change Denying Labor Day Event
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.- Today a coalition of groups led by the Center for Biological Diversity sent a letter to Verizon Wireless asking the corporation to withdraw its sponsorship of a Labor Day rally being held in West Virginia to support mountaintop removal coal mining and oppose climate legislation . The groups represent millions of members and include Natural Resources Defense Council, Defenders of Wildlife, Rainforest Action Network, Greenpeace USA, Friends of the Earth, Appalachian Voices, Christians Caring for Creation, and many others.
"Verizon Wireless may say they're an environmentally friendly company, but their mouth isn't where their money is. Verizon Wireless is now aware that they paid money to sponsor an event that celebrates mountaintop removal coal mining, and they have not withdrawn their sponsorship. They can keep saying they're a friend to the environment until they're green in the face, but there's just no environmentally friendly way to blow up mountains and dump them into streams," said Tierra Curry, a biologist at the Center for Biological Diversity.
More groups are expected to sign on to the letter, which will be updated on Monday. As of Friday morning, nearly 80,000 concerned citizens had submitted letters to Verizon Wireless through CREDO Action and the Center asking the company to withdraw its sponsorship of the event. Other groups have also launched action alerts to their membership.
As current customers of Verizon Wireless, several of the groups have expressed their concern to the company about its support for the mountaintop removal rally, including the Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, Natural Resources Defense Council, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, and Grand Canyon Wildlands Council, and intend to reevaluate their relationship with Verizon Wireless.
September 4, 2009
Lowell McAdam
President and Chief Executive Officer
Verizon Wireless
Dear Mr. McAdam,
We are writing on behalf of the millions of members of our organizations to request that you withdraw sponsorship of the Friends of America Rally being put on by the coal industry in West Virginia on Labor Day in support of mountaintop removal coal mining and in opposition to climate legislation.
We believe that Verizon Wireless' sponsorship of this event indicates the company's support for mountaintop removal coal mining and indicates opposition to climate change legislation. It is undeniable that the rally is a political event, for several reasons: Attendees must register for tickets online next to a link to sign a petition that's against climate legislation, the keynote speaker is a prominent critic of global climate change science, and the stated purpose of the event is to protect coal mining jobs, with a particular focus on mountaintop removal. Thus, by sponsoring this event, Verizon Wireless is also endorsing the political positions behind the event.
Coal is one of the largest sources of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Mountaintop removal coal mining has destroyed more than a thousand miles of streams and more than a million acres of forest in Appalachia, while permanently contaminating drinking water supplies, endangering residents with dust, fly rock, and mud slides, and jeopardizing imperiled species.
We ask that Verizon Wireless withdraw sponsorship of this event or explain the company's support for mountaintop removal coal mining and opposition to climate legislation. If Verizon Wireless indeed does not support mountaintop removal coal mining, then we ask that you officially let your customers know that you oppose this destructive practice.
We look forward to your prompt response.
Sincerely,
Appalachian Voices
The Center for Biological Diversity
Christians Caring for Creation
Chesapeake Climate Action Network
Coal River Mountain Watch
Defenders of Wildlife
Endangered Habitats League
Environmental Protection Information Center
Friends of the Earth
Global Exchange
Grand Canyon Wildlands Council
Great Old Broads for Wilderness
Greenpeace
Kentucky Heartwood
Natural Resources Defense Council
New Sustainability Project
Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition
Public Resource Associates
Rainforest Action Network
Responsible Endowments Coalition
San Bernardino Valley Audubon Society
Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards
After nearly a month of publicity and who knows what kinds of incentives (like a paid day to attend the rally?), Don Blankenship and friends got 100,000 registrations for his rally.
In less than five full days to already have nearly 80,000 concerned citizens submit letters to Verizon Wireless is nothing short of amazing.
Somehow, I don't think this is the kind of attention Blankenship and all those cosponsors were expecting when they decided to drop so much money into this event.
I asked Verizon officials for a response to all of this, and after being kicked around from office to office for a bit, I landed on the phone with Laura Merritt, a Verizon Wireless spokeswoman whose region includes West Virginia. Her response?
Basically, this was a decision at the local level to support the community. It did not involve the company's political positions at all.
In this particular situation, we are supporting the event because it's a local event. It wasn't an effort to take a position on any particular issue.
Another Verizon Wireless spokesperson, Jim Gerace, went a little farther. He said his company simply paid $1,000 for the right to be able to sell its products at the rally:
It's nothing more than that ... and the groups who are trying to make it more than that are misguided. I'm definitely bothered that people are trying to put us in the middle of an argument.
Ken Ward, Jr. also relates the responses of two coal industry executives involved with the Labor Day rally.
A Dead Zone
Verizon Wireless is yet to wake up from their dead zone of corporate irresponsibility. They have no idea how badly they misspent that $1,000. They want to make it sound like they're setting up a stand at a county fair.
There are more gaping holes in their explanation than the average horror movie plot:
(1) This isn't some local arts festival or veterans parade. Don Blankenship's Youtube invite to the event says, "We're going to have Hank Williams and have a good time but we're also going to learn how environmental extremists and corporate America are both trying to destroy your jobs."
(3) International figures Ted Nugent and Lord Monckton are both notorious for controversial views (to put it mildly). Nugent is the emcee, Monckton is one of prominently featured speakers.
(4) Event sponsor Gene Kitts doesn't portray Verizon Wireless as a mere vendor in the parking lot; he specifically thanks Verizon Wireless for endorsing the event's message: "Thank you Verizon Wireless for supporting the working people who actually pay the cell phone bills, even for clueless kids." (He may be give a sugar-coated version of the message in his tweet, but he's still tying Verizon Wireless to the message.)
(5) Roger Nicholson further politicizes the event in his response, ""[S]hrill cries from anti-mining extremists re Verizon support of FOA rally. Guess it pains em to see overwhelming backlash vs. their views."
The response by Verizon Wireless makes me all the more determined to get the message out about their sponsorship. On the one hand, they're pretending their sponsorship of an overtly political event has nothing to do with the events message. On the other hand, other events sponsors are going out of their way to tell us all it is a political event.
Roger Nicholson of Verizon Wireless should know we haven't put him "in the middle of an argument." Verizon Wireless signed up for itself. They are a huge company with huge resources. They should have known better than to sponsor this.
Act Now
Tell Verizon Wireless this is worst $1000 they've ever spent.
That'll certainly be some "Labor Day Wango Tango1" if God decides to send a three and a half story high wave of sludge roaring down the hollow just as Don Blankenship introduces the most upper of upper crust Lord Christopher Monckton, Third Viscount of Brenchley to one of the poorest areas in the United States.2. But it wouldn't be the first time God drowned a bunch of folks in Southern WV coal sludge.
Although Blankncheck hasn't warned anyone pre-registering to attend his "I HEART COAL" fest3, folks planning to go really should be made aware that there are more coal sludge impoundment dams per square mile around this doodah than anywhere else in the US.
Just one of the many nearby toxic sites holds an incredible 4.74 billion gallons of deadly slime soup behind a 345 ft. high dirt wall. By comparison, that's quadruple the amount of muck released in Tennessee's giant TVA spill not so long ago. The amount of toxic sludge spilld across Tennessee was reportedly 100 times larger than the famous Exxon Valdez disaster! According to the Coal Impoundment Location and Information System website4 there are absolutely NO evacuation plans filed with the state of WV, or with either of the counties of Mingo or Logan for an event the size of the one planned by Blankenship and his pals. NONE. Nor are there any instructions to the public on Blankenstein's spiffy "Friends of America" website warning folks of the imminent dangers. So good luck to all those Ted "Crusty Pants" Nugent fans when he starts machine gunning the crowd to clear them out of HIS way even as they trample each other to keep from drowning in liquified mercury, lead, arsenic, and selenium.
One more thing. While friendsofamericarally.com website advises everyone pre-registering to bring a lawn chair, do NOT plan to sit directly or go barefoot on any reclaimed site. The chemicals sprayed across reclaimed quarry topsoil in an attempt to force it to be "green" can be both caustic AND toxic.
Hal and Shirley Macleery listen at the United Mine Workers' annual Labor Day celebration in Racine.
Sarah K. Winn has the story--Racine was the place to be on Labor Day.
"Working families are losing their ground," said Elaine Harris, a representative with the Communication Workers of America. "The Bush administration has put its political agenda ahead of the good of the people."
Delegate Nancy Guthrie, D-Kanawha, agreed, saying 2008 should be different if people get out and express their opinions.
"If we are going to restore some virtue to this economy, you need to get up on your feet and get out on the street and vote Democrat," she said to the crowd. "We have everything to gain this time and nothing to lose."
John Unger, the state senator from Berkeley County and candidate for the 2nd Congressional District, related the story of his grandfather, whose career included work in a unionized quarry.
"He always put the fight in the fight," he said. "It is important to continue to fight for working families and for me to continue to join in that fight."
West Virginia University law professor Bob Bastress, who is running for the state Supreme Court, told the crowd about his law work defending mine workers and labor rights.
"I understand how important those paychecks are for workers," he said. In his 2000 campaign for the Supreme Court, Bastress had the support from labor groups.
[snip]
Gov. Joe Manchin, who arrived on his motorcycle, pointed to how the state is leading the way in the mining industry, particularly when it comes to safe conditions.
"West Virginia is making a difference," he said. "Everything is based around the safety of the worker. If we can't do it safe, don't do it."
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