PRESS ADVISORY

CONTACT: Justin Flores, JFlores@cmwj.org, 704-577-3480

Consumers Gather at Kangaroo Express Stores to Demonstrate Concerns for North Carolina Tobacco Farmworkers on Human Rights Day
Greensboro, NC Leading up to International Human Rights Day, dozens of people are set to have an action outside of three Kangaroo Express Convenience Store locations, including one at 3101 Yanceyville Street in Greensboro. Student and community groups hope to raise awareness about human rights abuses in the tobacco fields of North Carolina and the positive role Kangaroo can play in bringing consumer concerns to tobacco industry leaders. Kangaroo is the largest convenience store chain in the Southeast. Tobacco products make up over a third of Kangaroo sales and consumers believe this makes Kangaroo an integral part of the tobacco supply chain and a key player in addressing its problems. Kangaroo Express consumers who are students at local universities and members of the Beloved Community Center are calling on Kangaroo Chairman Ed Holman to continue bringing their concerns about the conditions of tobacco farmworkers in the fields of North Carolina to the attention of tobacco giants such as Reynolds American. While there are multiple companies that buy tobacco in NC, such as Phillip Morris USA and Phillip Morris International, Reynolds American is the largest tobacco company in the state and a leader in the tobacco industry. For over five years, The Farm Labor Organizing Committee, a farmworker union representing tobacco farmworkers, has sought to convince Reynolds to sign a written agreement guaranteeing labor rights in its supply chain. To date, the company has not done so. A recent report by Oxfam America and FLOC shows that human rights violations, including dilapidated housing, sub-minimum wages, work related illness, and fear of retaliation for speaking out, are widespread in the fields of North Carolina. Human Rights Day is an opportunity for Kangaroo Express consumers to request that Chairman Holman deliver a message to Reynolds American that Kangaroo Express customers want Reynolds to work with the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, to develop a written agreement that guarantees freedom of association and selfdetermination for farm workers. As Kangaroo consumers, we believe that these human rights abuses are unacceptable and we want Chairman Holman to express our concerns about the unjust treatment of tobacco farmworkers in North Carolina to those who have power in the tobacco industry, said Wesley Morris of the Beloved Community Center.

Who: When: Where: What:

Students and farmworker advocates December 10, 4:30pm Kangaroo Express at 3101 Yanceyville Street, Greensboro, NC Displaying of Banner, leafleting, and delivery of letter calling on Kangaroo Express Chairman Ed Holman to bring consumer concerns for the just treatment of tobacco farm workers in the fields of North Carolina to Reynolds American.