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Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi |
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| struggling |
| 05/12/02 at 22:41:41 |
| [slm] Arab anger triggers boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi By Andrew Gumbel 11 May 2002 Internal links Arab anger triggers boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi An informal boycott of American goods is gaining momentum in the Arab world, leading to a drastic drop-off in business for fast-food outlets, Starbucks coffee shops and basic groceries from Pepsi to Pampers. Driven by anger at US support for Israel's military incursions into the West Bank, the boycott is taking on dimensions unseen since the Arab League embargo on companies trading with Israel trailed off in the early 1990s, according to a report in yesterday's New York Times. The call is going out in mosques, on the street and over the internet, and lists are circulating in many countries to suggest alternatives to popular American brands. One list mistakenly says Domino's Pizza is non- American, presumably due to its Italian-sounding name. Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a cleric with a show on the Qatari al-Jazeera television channel, has a banner on his website reading: "Boycott America, from Pepsi cans to Boeing." In Damascus, billboards show scenes of devastation in the Jenin refugee camp, with the slogan in Arabic and English: "Boycott American products: Don't be an accomplice." One supermarket chain in Bahrain has already replaced about 1,000 US products on its shelves. In Tripoli, in northern Lebanon, a bomb exploded in an empty Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet on Thursday. Nobody was hurt. Some of the anti-American ardour has been fuelled by rumours, such as the widely circulated but untrue tale that McDonald's is donating a percentage of the cost of every meal to Israel. A pro-Israeli speech by Starbucks' chief executive, Howard Schultz, led to a wave of anger at the coffee chain, although it is so popular in Arab capitals that custom has diminished only slightly. However, there is only so much commercial harm even a complete boycott could do since US exports to the Arab world account for just 2.5 per cent of its trade revenue. Nevertheless, analysts cited by The New York Times said sales of fast food and other consumer items were down by 20-30 per cent. http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/story.jsp?story=293876 |
| Re: boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi |
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| nouha |
| 05/13/02 at 16:13:01 |
| [slm] i also heard that isreal is loosing money due to this boycotting issue, actually im trying to follow the boycott list but its hard seeing how they owe EVERYTHING, hey seven, can you ever give up [] wasalam ;) nouha:) |
| Re: boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi |
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| ltcorpest2 |
| 05/13/02 at 16:45:26 |
| hey, i am boycotting starbucks, i have only been in there once, when my wife was 8 months pregnant ( a huge favor to her). I found out i did not speak the same language 9 cant they just say small medium or large?. someone tried to guide me through and i ordered something for me and i almost made me thow up. Will never go in again, and i am also a coke guy, so pepsi is out too! |
| Re: boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi |
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| salik |
| 05/13/02 at 18:08:40 |
| [slm] The latest issue of al-talib (UCLA muslim students) magazine has a news item about the chiefs of Starbucks and Este Lauder openly supporting israel. I don't use Este Lauder products( do they have products for men?) and no more starbucks for me insh Allah. [slm] |
| Re: boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi |
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| bhaloo |
| 05/13/02 at 18:51:06 |
| [slm] I think it would be good to email the respective company and tell them why you are boycotting them, just so they know their sales are down because of ceratin actions they have chosen to take. |
| Re: boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi |
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| gift |
| 05/14/02 at 04:05:29 |
| [slm] here's a model letter you could use: >[ put the date here] > >Howard Schultz, CEO Starbucks Coffee Company >Starbucks Customer Relations >PO Box 3717 >Seattle, WA 98124-3717 >(206) 447-1575 x82900 >Dear Mr. Schultz, > >At a time when the current onslaught undertaken by Israel against the Palestinian people and their leaders has left hundreds of people dead, with thousands more injured, and thrown the region into a cycle of violence, it is disturbing that you would fuel an already tense situation by using inciteful language to "legitimize" Israel's actions. > >Your speech to members of the temple of Jewish Americans on Seattle's Capitol Hill in April stated that the reasons behind the current conflict in the region fueled from "anti-Semitism". However, you blatantly ignored the fact that Israeli non-compliance with international law calling on it to end its illegal occupation of Palestinian lands; the systematic assassinations and targeting of unarmed Palestinian men, women and children; and the besiegement of the chosen government of the Palestinian people are the fundamental reasons behind the conflict. > >You also did a great disservice to the American Jewish community by calling upon them to rise up and defend Israel despite its blatant defiance of international law and its jeopardizing of U.S. interests in the region. > >Palestinians of Muslim and Christian descent and many Israeli peace activists, as well as the international community - including official U.S. policy calling for an end to the occupation - illustrate that it is not a sense of anti -Semitism that is fueling the uncontrollable spiral of violence in the Middle East, but rather, it is the decades long illegal occupation of Palestinian land and the ongoing threat to the lives of Palestinians by the Israeli government that has plummeted the Holy Land into the sphere of war. > >It is regrettable that you should choose to make such remarks and risk your company by alienating people who will no longer purchase your products. > >You have lost my business and that of others seeking to promote peace and stability in the region. > > Sincerely, > > [put your name here] > > > >- END - > [wlm] |
| Re: boycott of Starbucks and Pepsi |
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| nouha |
| 05/14/02 at 18:01:38 |
| [slm] there was another one i got in my email, if i find ill post it, it goes to hultz, whatever his name is and four other people, anyway they wrote me back after i told them not to and they said that this howard guy wants peace in the mideast, but he was misquoted, blah blah blah..... wasalam nouha:) |
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