Cross-posted at the Writing on the Wal.
From the Boston Globe:
A group of children protesting Wal-Mart's alleged use of sweatshop labor was asked to leave the store property yesterday after trying to present a store manager with a letter detailing its concerns.
''Don't make me ask the police to make them leave," said a Wal-Mart employee, identified by her nametag as Donna, as the group stood outside the store entrance.
The children and their escorts refused to leave until she or an assistant manager who was with her agreed to take the letter and send it to the company's chief executive officer, H. Lee Scott Jr. The employee went inside; a Framingham police car pulled up later.
An officer directed the protesters to leave the Wal-Mart property. They complied peacefully.
What do the flacks in the Wal-Mart p.r. office have to say about threatening to arrest children?:
Bill Wertz, a company spokesman, said that it is not Wal-Mart's policy to sell products made in sweatshops. Wertz said the store is ''a target of a major campaign by union-based organizations to tarnish our reputation."
I think this kid puts that comment in proper perspective:
"Wal-Mart, instead of letting in what we're telling them, they're not listening," said Newton 10-year-old Owen Weitzman. "We're not going to stop until they listen."
By the way, do you think Owen is a Teamster or a member of the UFCW?
JR