FREE Film Screening: Food Chains
“The Revolution in America’s fields”
University of Michigan
Thursday, Feb 5
6 pm
Location: Blau auditorium at Ross (701 Tappan St.)
***There will be a panel directly following the film with members of Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW)***
Tickets are not needed to attend the event. Seats will be available first come, first serve. Food Chains Facebook Event HERE
Parking: The Hill St. Parking structure (901 Hill St.) does not require a permit after 5pm.
In this exposé, an intrepid group of Florida farmworkers battle to defeat the $4 trillion global supermarket industry through their ingenious Fair Food program, which partners with growers and retailers to improve working conditions for farm laborers in the United States.
There is more interest in food these days than ever, yet there is very little interest in the hands that pick it. Farmworkers, the foundation of our fresh food industry, are routinely abused and robbed of wages. In extreme cases they can be beaten, sexually harassed or even enslaved – all within the borders of the United States.
Food Chains reveals the human cost in our food supply and the complicity of large buyers of produce like fast food and supermarkets. Fast food is big, but supermarkets are bigger – earning $4 trillion globally. They have tremendous power over the agricultural system. Over the past 3 decades they have drained revenue from their supply chain leaving farmworkers in poverty and forced to work under subhuman conditions. Yet many take no responsibility for this.
The narrative of the film focuses on an intrepid and highly lauded group of tomato pickers from Southern Florida – the Coalition of Immokalee Workers or CIW – who are revolutionizing farm labor. Their story is one of hope and promise for the triumph of morality over corporate greed – to ensure a dignified life for farm workers and a more humane, transparent food chain.
Food Chains premiered at the 2014 Berlin Film Festival and screened subsequently at the Tribeca Film Festival and Guadalajara Film Festival. Food Chains will be released nationwide November 21st. The film’s Executive Producers include Eva Longoria and Eric Schlosser.
Action: On Friday, 5 February at noon, we will make the call to Wendy’s to join the Fair Food Program and help improve conditions for farmworkers in the company’s supply chain. After gathering in the Diag, we will march to the Wendy’s in the League where we will have a lively, colorful action together with farmworkers and allies from Florida. A group of farmworkers and students will deliver a letter to Wendy’s management. There will be signs available, but feel free to create your own!
Thank you to our generous sponsors:
