Tabling Tuesday for Farmworker Justice

The UK SSU will be tabling on the first floor of the UK Student Center on Tuesday (11/27), from 10am to 2pm. We'll be near the Student Government office.

Please stop by to sign a letter to the management of Kroger. We are collecting signatures asking Kroger to agree to pay one cent more per pound of tomatoes, as part of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' campaign for a living wage and better conditions for Florida farmworkers.

Please contact me, standinsolidarity@yahoo.com, if you'd like to help table.

Here is the letter to Kroger we'll be gathering signatures on: http://www.ciw-online.org/Resources/supermarkets/manager%20letters/kroger.pdf.
More information about the Coalition of Immokalee Workers: www.ciw-online.org.

Before the end of the semester, we'll get a group together to deliver letters and petition signatures in person to the management of the Euclid Avenue Kroger, one of the busiest Kroger grocery stores in the nation. As always, stay tuned for updates.

Local student activist at risk of deportation; sign the petition!

A student at BCTC who has been involved in Dream Act activism is currently at risk of deportation. Read her story and take action at: http://www.change.org/petitions/view/halt_the_deportation_of_all-american_dreamer_jennifer_abreu.

Expanding the Blog

Hi all! We're updating and expanding the blog, so stay tuned. Previously we were just the U.K. Socialist Student Union blog, but now that the SSU has a new branch over at Bluegrass Community and Technical College, we'll be sharing the blog between the UK and BCTC SSUs.

We hope to use this blog as a tool to unite other socialist students and socialist student groups around the state.

At a UK SSU meeting a couple of weeks ago, we decided we'd like to try to a hold a meeting early next semester, before the end of January, to discuss involving other socialist student organizations around the state in forming a Kentucky Socialist Student Union.

Next UK SSU meeting, Thurs (Nov. 18), 5pm

Hi all,

We're quickly trying to pull together another UK Socialist Student Union meeting for this Thursday (tomorrow, Nov. 18) at 5pm at Coffea coffeeshop (385 Rose St., Lexington). So sorry for the short notice; please help spread the word. As always, all are welcome.

Main agenda items:
*campaign for farmworker justice w/ regard to Kroger
*planning at least one more forum or movie night before the end of the semester
*collaboration with BCTC SSU and building connections to socialist student activists around the state

It will be a fun, short meeting. :) Hope to see you then.

In Solidarity,
Joan Braune

Next Meeting, Wednesday Nov. 10

Hi all! The next meeting of the UK Socialist Student Union will be Wednesday, Nov. 10, at 5pm at Common Grounds Coffee House (343 E. High St., Lexington). All are welcome.

Topics on the agenda include:

*School of the Americas protest (www.soaw.org)
*Migrant farm workers' campaign for justice against Kroger (See below)
*Continued solidarity/collaboration with new BCTC Socialist Student Union
*Possible upcoming events: for Dream Act (immigrant students' rights), against Islamophobia
*Other event ideas...Film screening?
*Report-back on Marx in Soho event (which was a huge success!)

Hope to see you Wednesday!

CIW and Euclid Kroger Ideas

Hey everyone!  This is a repost of my overview of the SSU's options concerning the CIW and the Euclid Kroger, sent out from the listserv.

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The CIW's current campaign is focused on the major grocery chains across the company.  After having major successes with various restaurant chains (most notably McDonald's, Taco Bell, and Burger King), the CIW shifted their focus.  Since then, 6 companies have joined (including Good Foods).  Now they're focusing on other major retailers, including Kroger.

 

This presents an opportunity to SSU.  One of the primary actions on the CIW website is printing out a letter and giving it to the manager.  This, I presume, is aimed to create consumer pressure on store-level managers, agitating them enough to bring this up with regional managers, etc.  Sort of like climbing the pyramid.  Here's the link to the printable letter: http://www.ciw-online.org/Resources/supermarkets/manager%20letters/kroger.pdf

 

Other options include printing off a postcard and mailing it to Kroger HQ.  We could also rally/protest/table outside a Kroger location. However, I think our best option is obtaining an educational DVD and screening it, and then presenting either post cards or manager letters at the movie presentation.

 

Here's the action page on the CIW website: http://sfalliance.org/action.html

A specter is haunting Lexington...

On Tuesday (Oct. 19), the UK and BCTC Socialist Student Unions will be co-hosting a performance of Howard Zinn's play Marx in Soho at Natasha's Bistro.

Tuesday, Oct. 19
8 pm
Natasha's Bistro (112 Esplanade, Lexington KY)

It's a great play, written, directed, and acted by awesome people. And it's about the ghost of Karl Marx, who refuses to stay dead. And it benefits student activism. What's not to love?

Stick around, if you can...after the performance, the SSU will lead a discussion about the play and about the relevance of Marx's ideas for today.

Come to support local student activists! Proceeds from the evening's performance will help to fund future Socialist Student Union activities, including helping to send some students to the upcoming School of the Americas protest (http://www.soaw.org/) in Georgia in November, to meet with activists from around the country and speak out against torture and massacres in Latin America.

Reservations: 859-259-2754 or http://www.beetnik.com/

Please help spread the word about this event! It's going to be awesome.