FORT MYERS NEWS-PRESS

November 13, 2007

Coalition honored for war on slavery
Immokalee group wins international award

By Erin Gillespie

In the past decade, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers has helped prosecute six slavery cases that freed more than 1,000 workers from forced labor.

It also led human-rights campaigns to get major fast food companies to increase wages of field workers.

The coalition’s human-rights campaigns helped it win an international anti-slavery award.

London-based Anti-Slavery International, the world’s oldest international human-rights organization, has chosen the coalition for its 2007 Anti-Slavery Award.

“We’re very honored to receive the award, but at the same time, we would rather, in the 21st century, that this not need to be around anymore,” said Laura Germino, the anti-slavery campaign coordinator for the coalition.

Anti-Slavery International works with groups all over the world to fight debt bondage, forced labor, forced marriage, child labor, human trafficking and traditional slavery.

The coalition is a worker-led community organization based in Immokalee that works with farm workers trafficked into forced labor, many of whom are from Mexico and Central America. It uncovers and investigates cases of slavery and raises awareness of forced labor among farm workers.

“It’s really past time to actually end the sweatshop conditions and the fields which allow slavery to take place,” Germino said.

Former award winners included groups and people who fought slavery in Sudan and Niger, child labor in the Philippines, sex trafficking in Albania and the use of child soldiers in Uganda.

The award does not come with a financial benefit.

Germino said the award will open up awareness opportunities across Europe after the Nov. 21 ceremony in London.

“This is also very helpful in getting the word out to European consumers who are very interested that the fast food they consume is fair food,” Germino said. “Consumers don’t really want to partner in exploitation or modern-day slavery.”

The coalition has also successfully campaigned for corporate buyers such as McDonald’s and Taco Bell to take responsibility for the conditions in their supply chain and pay workers more.

The coalition is working to raise money to move into new headquarters on Second Street in Immokalee. The building would house the coalition’s radio station, the co-operative grocery that sells to workers at cost, the anti-slavery campaign and the other departments of the coalition.

Jordan Buckley of Interfaith Action of Southwest Florida, said the religious organization is helping the coalition with its capital campaign.

“Every Wednesday night when the coalition has its weekly meetings, there’s not enough room to hold all the people who want to learn about labor rights and human rights,” Buckley said.

The coalition is trying to raise $75,000 by the end of the year to be able to move into the building early next year.