My Big Adventure in Boycotting, by Chalmer Thompson
Full disclosure: I’m not exactly new to boycotting. Years ago, I steered clear of Shell gas stations during the divestiture movement against the South African apartheid government. I stopped shopping at Walmart when I first learned about their poor labor practices. Presently, whenever I visit my family in Florida, I opt for alternatives to Publix grocery stores because of their refusal to support the rights of farmworkers for fair work conditions. I stay away from Hobby Lobby, Cracker Barrel, Home Depot, and most recently Lowe’s, because of various reports of unfair bias in the corporations’ decision-making about LGBTQ hiring, financial support for issues that concern that well-being of the poor, and lobbing off diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) mandates.
Still, I haven’t been consistent in my boycotting and I’ll admit that I often scramble hastily to find alternatives that end up being no less “boycottable” than my targets. But not any more. As I become more familiar with alarming reports that affect the lives of people locally and around the world, like reports about the corporations that benefit from and even fuel the horrific violence in Sudan, Congo, and Israel/Palestine, I am committed to being more active in deciding where and with whom to spend my money.
The purpose of this blog, My Big Adventure in Boycotting, is to share my journey about boycotting with those of you who are new to it or who, like me, want to step up your game. I’ll conduct research about corporations who are complicit in unfair treatment of African-descended people, and for that matter, any group --- our need, more than ever, is to connect more, and share this information on this blog. In this environment of disinformation, I’ll make sure to glean from several sources for corroboration that the companies are indeed engaging in unfair practices.
I also will search for alternatives for our shopping dollars. My boycott focus is to avoid purchasing products from companies that engage in unfair practices that keep poor people impoverished and that affect the treatment of African-, Latino/a/x, Asian, and Native American/Indigenous/Alaskan (ALANA) people. I will focus on corporations that support apartheid or oppressive regimes around the world. I’ll also want to explore organizations that fail to respond in consistent, meaningful ways to the concerns of LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, and those who are imprisoned/detained.
The two most frequent questions I get asked about my boycotting are 1, “are there true alternatives to the boycotted products and services?” and 2, “if they exist, are these fair and progressive vendors and corporations more expensive than the boycotted ones?” From what I can tell so far, the answer to the first question is an honest “YES, WELL MOSTLY. . .” For the second question, I’ll do my best to attend to issues of cost and accessibility. And as regarding this second question, this matter of cost and convenience is one that is especially important because, in my view,. boycotting can seem like a luxury. Gathering information about what to boycott and where to go to replace items and services requires time and money, what many people don’t have even if they’re uber motivated to take part in the movement.
I am semi-retired and willing to take on the task!
Another important question people ask me is “does boycotting work”? There is evidence that it does work, and I’ll uncover some of this information as well. Allow me to do the important work of digging for information and feel free to provide additional or disconfirming information so that we all become informed. I can be reached at indianaabpsi@gmail.com.
Here’s a little something about me. I’m a Black, female professor emerita who lives in Indiana. I work about 5 hours a week as a legal consultant. I am a liberation-peace psychologist with an extensive record of research and other kinds of activities. I’m happy to share more about myself as I move through this journey.
Thanks for traveling on this journey with me.
