The Un-Sugarcoated Truth: How Sugar Workers are Fighting for Justice
Join us to learn how sugar worker communities in the Dominican Republic are organizing to fight injustice
More than 60% of products in U.S. grocery stores contain added sugar – but the truth behind the controversial crop is often hard to swallow. Join us for The Un-Sugarcoated Truth: a timely conversation about labor abuses in the sugar industry and how sugar worker communities are organizing to fight against injustice.
The history of sugarcane production presents parallels for the reality we see on sugarcane plantations today, which replicate conditions of exploitation, forced labor, and racism for profit. In the Dominican Republic today, many sugarcane workers suffer astounding abuses at the hands of the billion-dollar company Central Romana. These workers are continuing to fight for their rights despite all odds, even since U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reversed a decision blocking the company’s sugar from entering the U.S., despite clear evidence that forced labor is ongoing.
This event will spotlight Corporate Accountability Lab’s work on the Central Romana case and explore what needs to be done to transform the sugar industry to ensure it protects workers and the planet.
About Our Panelists
Our panel will be moderated by Jerome McDonnell: Chicago broadcasting legend, longtime host of Worldview on WBEZ, and board member of Chicago Fair Trade.
Charity Ryerson, Founder and Executive Director at Corporate Accountability Lab
Charity Ryerson is an attorney, legal designer, activist and strategist with two decades of experience fighting corporate abuse around the globe. She leads a team of committed advocates who design, prototype and test new strategies to protect the world and her inhabitants from corporate misconduct.
Avery Kelly, Senior Staff Attorney at Corporate Accountability Lab
Avery Kelly collaborates with communities and advocates around the world on issues including forced labor in the supply chains of US companies and accountability for multinational corporations in transitional and post-conflict settings.
Dr. Howard Rosing, Executive Director of DePaul University’s Steans Center
Dr. Rosing is a cultural anthropologist whose research focuses on sustainable food systems development, urban food access, economic restructuring, and food justice movements in Chicago and the Dominican Republic.
Daniel Regueira, founder of Chicago Cane Cooperative
Having emerged on sugarcane plantations in the 17th century, rum has a troubling, blood-soaked history. Daniel founded Chicago Cane Cooperative, one of the first worker-owned spirits producers in the world, to focus on the creation of rum-based spirits that inspire collective action toward a more sustainable and transparent liquor industry.
About the sugar industry in the Dominican Republic
Sugarcane workers in the Dominican Republic face some of the harshest working conditions in the world: conditions CBP once labeled as forced labor. The decision to lift the ban on Central Romana imports signals a dangerous shift in how labor laws are being enforced, or perhaps more accurately, ignored. In fact, this decision was made without regard to normal government procedures and under circumstances suggesting that an unholy combination of corporate money and raw domestic politics may well have played a role.
This conversation will explore the systems that enable abuse, the courageous organizing efforts resisting them, and how we as consumers and citizens can demand accountability.
Stick around for an ethical rum tasting!
Following the panel, Daniel Regueira of Chicago Cane Cooperative will lead a short rum tasting featuring the cooperative’s locally produced, ethically sourced rum. Enjoy cocktails crafted with this standout spirit and learn how Chicago Cane Cooperative’s small-batch approach is redefining what a more ethical alcohol industry can look like.
Tickets
Tickets are $10 (including a complimentary rum cocktail or soft drink) or FREE for Chicago Fair Trade members. Space is limited, so please RSVP to reserve your seat.