NoVa Activists Stage "Spirited" March

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)A sleepy Ballston awakened Saturday morning to a noisy and spirited demonstration by more than 100 student, community, civil rights, and labor activists who demanded respect for workers' rights. The March for Fair Food was part of the national day of action in support of Smithfield Packing workers in Tar Heel, NC and the national Student-Labor Week of Action. The event kicked off with a rally at the Ballston Metro, where Rev. Graylan Hagler of Ministers for Racial and Economic Justice spoke about the abuse Smithfield workers face. The crowd then marched to a nearby Starbucks, where members of the IWW spoke of low pay and benefits for baristas and Starbuck's disrespect for Ethiopian coffee growers who produce some of their most popular and profitable beans. When the marchers reached the Harris Teeter store on Glebe Road, they were greeted by a crowd of Northern Virginia labor activists, including three state delegates who were there to speak in support of the action. A delegation of seven faith and community leaders, led by Rev. David Denham of Bethel UCC, went into the store to ask Harris Teeter to take Smithfield products off their shelves. The march – which NoVa CLC President Dan Duncan says had “great energy” -- ended at McDonald's, where student activists spoke about the conditions faced by tomato pickers in Florida and the efforts by the Coalition of Immokalee workers to organize for better pay and dignified work conditions.
- reported by Mackenzie Baris; photos by Dan Duncan