Olympia Food Co-op Boycott FAQs
Why does the Co-op
take political stands?
What other countries
does the Co-op boycott?
How did the Co-op
come to join the boycott of Israeli products?
What does “block”
or “consent” mean at the Co-op?
Why didn’t members
vote on the boycott before it was enacted?
Are all boycotts
decided by the Board?
How many products
were affected by the Israeli boycott?
Has the Co-op lost
money due to the boycott?
Is the Co-op
boycotting all Jewish businesses? Is the Co-op Anti-Semitic?
Did the boycott
create division in the community?
Why isn’t the
Co-op pursuing community dialogue or a reconciliation process right
now?
MORE FAQs
Why does the Co-op
take political stands?
Politics are at the heart
of what makes the Co-op different from other grocery stores. Organic
standards, fair trade, and GMO policies are all political stands that
the Co-op weighs in on, from the products on our shelves to the signs
on our doors.
Being political is part of
the Co-op’s purpose. Our mission statement directs the kinds of
work we do, and that includes encouraging economic and social
justice, making good food accessible to more people, fostering a
socially and economically egalitarian society, making human effects
on the earth and its inhabitants positive and renewing, and
supporting local production.
Other, conventional
grocery stores are also political. Many of them donate to political
parties or other causes. The difference is that the Co-op’s
political decisions are based on our mission statement, are
transparent, and can be directly changed by member vote.
What other countries
does the Co-op boycott?
In addition to the boycott
of Israeli goods, the Co-op also boycotts products from China. This
is due to China’s ongoing human rights violations against the
Tibetan people.
In the past, the Co-op has
boycotted Norway, for its decision to resume commercial whaling, and
the state of Colorado, for anti-gay legislation passed in the early
90s. The Co-op has also boycotted individual companies, including
IAMS, Gardenburger, and Coca Cola.
Some individuals have
suggested that the Co-op should boycott producers in the United
States, because of U.S. human rights violations at home and abroad.
Although we disagree with many actions, past and present, at home and
abroad, taken by the U.S. government, it would not be possible to run
a co-op while boycotting U.S. producers. Furthermore, such a decision
would be in direct opposition to our goal of “supporting local
production”.
How did the Co-op
come to join the boycott of Israeli products?
Please see “How the Co-op made the Boycott Decision”
The Co-op Board and staff
both use consensus process to make decisions. In consensus
decision-making, there is no majority vote. Instead, everyone must
either consent (agree) or stand-aside (similar to abstaining from a
vote) in order for a decision to be made. Any single person can
“block” a decision.
There are many different
forms of consensus. Wikipedia gives a good overview of general
consensus history, theory and practice at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consensus_decision-making.
Why didn’t members
vote on the boycott of Israeli products before it was enacted?
There are three main
reasons that the Board did not call for a member vote when
considering the boycott in 2010:
- It has never been a practice of the Co-op to ask members to vote on boycotts. The Co-op has instituted many boycotts, but has never brought one to a member vote.
- The Co-op had already spent more than a year considering the boycott suggestion at the time that members—and staff—asked the Board to make a decision.
- The Board felt that the boycott clearly fell under both the Co-op’s mission and current boycott policy, which stated, “Whenever possible, the Olympia Food Co-op will honor nationally recognized boycotts which are called for reasons that are compatible with our goals and mission statement.”
However, any member may
collect signatures to put the issue on a Co-op ballot via the “Member
Initiated Ballot” process.
http://olympiafood.coop/MIBProcedurePetitionReqs.pdf
Are all boycotts
decided by the Board?
At the moment, the current
boycott policy remains in effect, and the Board also continues to
have the right to make decisions, too, per the Co-op’s bylaws. The
boycott policy is available at http://olympiafood.coop/boycott.
The recommendations of the
Boycott Policy Committee have not yet been considered, due to the
ongoing lawsuit.
How many products
were affected by the Israeli boycott?
The Co-op stopped selling
about nine products. They included gluten-free and regular ice cream
cones, moisturizer, baby wipes, crackers, and several flavors of
dairy-free chocolate bars. The boycott affected approximately 0.075
percent of the Co-op’s inventory.
Has the Co-op lost
money due to the boycott?
Sales and memberships
continued to rise in the months after the boycott was enacted, as
well as in the years since. Although some of this rise may be
attributable to the enactment of the boycott, it could also be due to
other factors; it is difficult to say for sure. Although a small
number of Co-op members rescinded their membership after the boycott
was enacted, more joined the Co-op. In the future, we hope to regain
the trust and reactivate the memberships of those who have left.
Is the Co-op
boycotting all Jewish businesses? Is the Co-op Anti-Semitic?
The Co-op continues to
sell products made by Jewish producers, and to stock ritual and
holiday Jewish foods. We strive to work against both Anti-Jewish and
Anti-Arab racism. We have passed on information and held trainings on
Anti-Semitism within the community since the boycott was enacted. We
do not believe that criticizing the government of Israel is
anti-Semitic.
Did the boycott
create division in the community?
Members of the Co-op, and
members of the larger community, held strong views about the Israeli
and Palestinian conflict before the Co-op enacted the boycott of
Israeli products in support of Palestinian human rights. The
enactment of the Israeli product boycott did not create divisions
within the community – but it did expose divisions that already
existed.
Why isn’t the
Co-op pursuing community dialogue or a reconciliation process right
now?
Because we are involved in
a lawsuit, we have not been able to undertake the additional dialogue
within the community that we, and many others, feel is needed. This
includes reconciliation processes and community dialogue (as
recommended by the Co-op Conversation) as well as updating the
Co-op’s boycott policy. There are several reasons that the Board
has decided to pause this work:
- The lawsuit poses a financial risk to the Co-op. The plaintiffs have argued that, even if they lose their appeal, the Co-op should pay any fees or fines they incurred because they are suing on behalf of the Co-op. (Page 46 of their appeal, available at http://ccrjustice.org/files/Davisv.Cox_AppellantsBrief(02-22-2013).pdf).
Conversely,
if the plaintiffs win
their appeal, the indemnification clause in the Co-op’s bylaws
requires the Co-op to pay any fees or fines assessed to the
defendants. (See part III, section 18 of the Co-op’s bylaws for
information on indemnification of Board members.) Until the lawsuit
is resolved, the Co-op’s financial risk remains unclear.
- As long as the lawsuit is ongoing, individual member and community comments could be used by either the plaintiffs or defendants in the lawsuit. Open dialogue is not possible when it is only attended by those individuals who are willing to take the risk that their comments might become part of a lawsuit.
- Full participation in reconciliation processes is not possible when some parties cannot take part because they are parties in a lawsuit. Regardless of whether an individual is in the right or in the wrong, the threat of their statements being used against them in court precludes open dialogue.
The Board is committed to
continuing our work on the Co-op Conversation’s recommendations,
and on the boycott policy review, as soon as the lawsuit is resolved.
The Co-op Conversation report can be read at
http://coopconversation.org/2012/10/01/co-op-conversation-board-report-2/.
MORE FAQs
The Olympia Boycott,
Divestment and Sanctions group also maintains its own FAQ sheet on
the Olympia Food Co-op’s boycott. Members looking for an additional
perspective can read them at
http://www.olympiabds.org/resources/faq.html.
