New York University is set to ban Coca-Cola products from campus on December 8th, unless the company agrees to an independent investigation of its Colombian bottling operations. Coke has been dogged for years by rumors of unspeakable brutality at the Colombian plants-- everything from kidnappings to murder-- and for the last couple of years, a national movement led by KillerCoke has been organizing bans on university campuses across the United States. Already 19 colleges have banned Coca-Cola from their campus vending machines, but given that NYU is the largest private higher-ed institution in the country, this could be a huge victory for the anti-Coke activists. Washington Square News captured some student reactions to the ban:
“This institution has no right to make a judgment call of any kind,” Tisch junior Mike Misslin said. “I also think it’s particularly interesting that a school where the graduate students are basically saying they’re being exploited are making a judgment call on Coke’s labor policy.”
Jermaine Encarnacion, a Tisch graduate student alumnus and current post-production assistant at Tisch said NYU’s action against Coca-Cola could impact the situation in Colombia.
“I think we need to do anything, and even the small gesture by NYU could have a significant impression on Coca-Cola,” Encarnation said. “And maybe if other universities follow suit, it could make a real difference in people’s lives.”
We're not huge fans of Coca-Cola-- and it's not just their union-busting-- did you know that one can of Coke Classic contains 13% of your daily recommended carb intake? We recommend you stick to good old New York City tap water-- it's free, good for you, and totally uninvolved in third world politics.
