Movement Targets Shareholder Meetings and Other Actions in Fight for Economic Equality
Washington, DC—(ENEWSPF)—April 18, 2012. With actions this week and next, 99% Power is launching a massive national campaign holding corporate America accountable. 99% Power is targeting specific corporations, at their shareholder meetings as well as other events, with the goal to create an economy that works for all. Over the next few days, 99% Power will be active in San Francisco focusing on Wal-Mart and Wells Fargo and in Detroit for GE, with the 1% squarely in their sights. A campaign of civil action, both large and small, is in motion. Among the actions planned are public rallies where specific corporations will be holding their annual shareholder meetings, as well as highly-directed actions in concert with those rallies and meetings. “More and more people are acknowledging that the change we need won’t come from Washington, abusive corporations, or bailed out banks,” said Sarita Gupta, Executive Director of Jobs with Justice.
“This spring, the 99% is uniting to learn the lessons of history, and confront the people responsible for standing in the way of change.” “This spring, Americans from all walks of life will come together around a shared vision of a new bottom line that includes the health and well-being of workers, communities and the environment,” said George Goehl, executive director of National People’s Action and co-founder of The New Bottom Line. “Under the broad banner of 99% Power, thousands of people will engage in mobilizations and nonviolent direct action leading up to and at the shareholder meetings of dozens of corporations. There is no road to a fair economy and true democracy that does not include going toe to toe with abusive corporations.”
“The task of our time is to reign in the unchecked corporate power undermining the health of our country and our environment,” said Rainforest Action Network’s executive director Rebecca Tarbotton. “What if our government worked not for the highest corporate bidder but for the highest interests of its people and the planet? That is the promise and potential the 99% Power is fighting for.
Our demands for economic and ecological sanity are not only reasonable they are essential and they are popular.” Among the many things 99% Power seeks to accomplish in their actions are:
- Corporations funding their fair share in taxes;
- Corporations funding the future — not pillaging it;
- Corporations creating, instead of killing, good jobs in our communities;
- Restore our homes to rebuild our communities and resetting the economy;
- Getting corporate money out of our democracy.
April 19: Gala for the 99%, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, 5 PM PST
Members of the 99% will hold a picnic-style “People’s Gala” in contrast to the obscenely opulent 1% Gala taking place inside the Academy of Sciences, featuring members of the Walton family. Speakers will tell the stories of what they’ve “donated” to the Waltons’ wealth. Meanwhile, across America, people will target the Facebook page of “Govern for California” with similar messaging.
“Govern for California” is a political organization dedicated to extending the iron grip of the 1% on our economy and democracy.
April 24: The 99% Take Over the Wells Fargo Shareholder Meeting, San Francisco, CA, 10 AM to 5 PM PST
The 99% takeover of the Wells Fargo meeting will take place in three waves:
- Outside: the first wave of protestors will participate in non-violent direct action with the goal of preventing the shareholder’s meeting from taking place and demanding that Wells Fargo move their meeting outside for a public “stakeholder’s meeting” to face the families and communities their policies are impacting.
- Democratic Participation: In the event that protestors on the outside are unsuccessful at preventing the meeting from happening, shareholders plan a second wave of participating inside the meeting to demand their voices be heard.
- People’s Stakeholder Meeting: Outside of the meeting, thousand of stakeholder’s will organize a rally where speaker will demand the Wells Fargo cedes to the demands of the 99%
April 25: GE Shareholder meeting, Detroit, MI, 8 AM to 2 PM EST
Members of the 99% will travel from all over the country to the GE shareholder meeting in Detroit, MI, to tell the tax-dodging corporation that it’s time for GE to pay its fair share. On Wednesday, April 25, thousands will converge on the 10 a.m. meeting at the Renaissance Center. Teachers, secretaries, GE retirees, and unemployed workers will demand an end to GE’s tax-dodging and job-killing. We’ve already been shining a light on GE’s bad practices in cities across the country. 99% delegations attempted to deliver a message of corporate responsibility to GE board members in Chicago, Boston, New York City, Ithaca, and elsewhere.
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99% Power is a coalition that includes workers and retirees, families fighting foreclosure and the unemployed, students, immigrants and environmentalists. You can learn more about the coalition and the mobilizations here: www.the99power.org.
