BY MARA REVKIN

In print | October 26, 2006

In an Oct. 9 letter addressed to Coca-Cola President J.A.M. Douglas, Swarthmore threatened to terminate its contract with the beverage company by Nov. 1 of this year. Writing on behalf of the college, Vice President Maurice Eldridge ‘61 reiterated the college’s expectation that the company “complete an independent investigation into matters related to labor relations in Colombia and environmental degradation in India.”

“With this letter we renew our call that you proceed with independent investigations of the claims made against you, past and present, commit to revealing the findings of those investigations and to redressing any wrongs they may reveal,” Eldridge wrote.

The College has been under increasing pressure from Kick Coke since the student group successfully convinced the administration to suspend the sale of Coca Cola products in Essie Mae’s and the two coffee bars. Sharples continues to serve Coca Cola beverages from its fountain drink machines under a contract due to expire in November. The college’s statement asserted that renewal of this contract is conditional upon further investigation and reform of Coca-Cola’s allegedly abusive management practices.

Ruth Schultz ‘09, a coordinator of the Kick Coke campaign, said that Eldridge’s recent statement offered Coke a “last chance” to salvage its contract with the college through reform of unethical corporate practices. “The letter clearly outlines the steps that we want to see taken, and if Coke doesn’t take those steps, the college will cut the contract,” Schultz said.

Eldridge said that the College “will stand by its decision to remove its products from campus if Coca-Cola fails to meet these conditions by Nov. 1.” Although the termination of the contract would be effective immediately, Eldridge said that the fountain beverages would likely remain in use through winter break due to the technical challenges of contracting an alternate vendor. “Realistically, it would be difficult to entirely eliminate a Coke presence before December, but it helps to have deadlines,” Eldridge said.

Loss of the Swarthmore contract would have a negligible impact on Coca-Cola’s global market, but negative publicity generated by the campaign could compromise the company’s public image. “The whole point of the campaign is to pressure Coke to redress unethical practices by undermining the company’s image and appeal, particularly to the teenagers and college students that are such a target of corporate advertising. The strategy is to hit them where it hurts in order to get them to change their practice of labor and environmental rights abuses.” Schultz said.

According to Zoe Bridges-Curry ‘09, a student actively involved in the campaign, "Swarthmore’s money may not be a huge consideration for Coke, but we can utilize our potential as an elite academic institution to make an impact by mobilizing the media." Bridges-Curry said that Kick Coke hopes to leverage Swarthmore’s institutional reputation to generate nationwide awareness of the company’s unethical policies. “If we can generate enough publicity, other schools will follow our lead,” Bridges-Curry said.

Eldrige confirmed that Coca-Cola has a stake in preserving its appeal to the collegiate demographic. “Coke is clearly concerned with what we think,” Eldridge said, adding that Coca Cola recently mailed corporate literature to Vice President of Facilities Stu Hain in an apparent outreach effort. Hain was not available for comment in time for publication.

On Oct. 12, Swarthmore’s Kick Coke campaign participated in a National Day of Action, which featured “a kick the can contest with candy prizes” among other awareness-oriented activities. Although the Day of Action was independently organized on a national scale, the initiative coincided with Swarthmore’s announcement of a Nov. 1 ultimatum for Coke’s compliance to the conditions required for renewal of the contract. Bridges-Curry said the Kick Coke concluded the Day of Action by presenting a card to the administration “thanking the college for its demonstrated commitment to social and economic justice.”

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