Saturday, January 26, 2013

Activist Artists Don't Cross Picket Lines (and other ways to walk the walk)

I'm an activist artist. As an artist my focus is to invite people to consider changing their consciousness. I have changed my own consciousness "so much" since my upbringing in early 60s Scotland. Many boundaries expanded. Many concepts, understandings and ignorances discarded. Changing consciousness is the true revolution.

The Scotland of my childhood was a union country. There was still large-scale shipbuilding, large-scale coal mining. Even then, I noticed that our communities were intra-supportive.

And so to an entwined story about me and two of the local grocery stores I shop at.

I've been shopping at my local Nob Hill store for more than eight years. A short while back (November 2012) management decided they wanted to, essentially, get rid of the union. Short story version - There was a strike that lasted nine days ... the union won and the kinda clumsy management lost. The saturday (grocery shopping day for this family) in the middle of the strike I went to Nob Hill ... to shop. Pickets were out. My friends who serve me there were on the pickeet lines. We talked. I didn't cross the picket line. No way, for more than one reason. Including ... activist artists don't cross picket lines.

So on to January 2013 ... John Mackey, co CEO of Whole Foods Market, a corporation that espouses radical and very good ideas around shop local, fair trade, organic food and so on, denounces Obamacare as "fascist". Well ... I was horrified. I've been shopping at my local Whole Foods store for more than eight years.

I wrote to my local Wholefoods Market store denouncing this. And, received an acknowledging reply. Here is an extract -

"Thank you for contacting Whole Foods Market to share your thoughts on John Mackey’s recent comments in the media. We understand and are concerned about your feelings of disappointment. We are hearing from many of our customers about this, and we are sharing all of the feedback we’re receiving with our leadership team, that includes both co-CEOs. I want to acknowledge that we may not be able to provide a response that satisfies your comments ...Thank you for your feedback. Again, I understand this message may not win back your support, but I do hope you'll reconsider and please know that we are listening and working to make our stores (and our company) a positive part of your life."

I'm boycotting them now. It is sad and awakening, both, to realise that some people who claim to actively be for a "better" human civilization are actually one-percenter elitists at heart. The several large goods that Obamacare brings to the healthcare chaos in this country are huge.

Activist artists don't give their business to elitist one-percenter wolves in sheep clothing. No way.

And ... by the way ... my new current work (short stories) goes well. More on that and these another time.

Namaste! I bow to and honour the Light within You ...