Second Day of Action: Seminis Inc. Espionage and More Flyer Distribution.

A man on a mission.

        I wanted to get an up close and personal look at Seminis Inc. so I know what to expect on the day of the protest. One may use the word espionage if they so desire it as I yes, did a sort of covert mission to gain access into their facility. I first arrived on Brunken Ave. and made my way up to the front of the office. Looking around from the outside I saw a "No Trespassing" sign and a "No weapons permitted" sign on the window and I thought - they certainly are ready for a return of rowdy activists. I looked inside and realized the place was totally desolate but I continued and pushed the door open. No one heard me come in. I looked around: just a low lite room with two smaller rooms connected, a table with some oranges in a bowl, bookshelves with ceramic statues of lettuce and corn displayed on top. Then I shouted "hello?" Some guy wearing a baseball cap and a hoodie and fumbled out of the room on the right and replied "yeah hey what's up?"
"I'm a college student and I came over here because I had some questions about Seminis; like what kind of jobs you guys have to offer and how I may apply."
"Oh yeah well we got a few jobs right now. You should check us out online, there's more information there. We're just a satellite location and subsidiary of Monsanto, I don't have too much information here."
"Sure I'll check it out. So do you guys do work on lettuce around here?"
"Yep, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, sugar beets."
"Oh nice for better resistance to spraying?"
"Yeah tolerance, we are also just working on making better varieties." The guy was friendly all and all. Though I'm sure if he knew my position on Monsanto he would have been much more aggressive. After a short conversation I said goodbye and that I'd look for more information online and walked out.
                  It was beneficial that I spoke to that Seminis employee. I didn't know lettuce was being genetically modified right here in our county and communities. It made me realize that this issue really does hit home. We aren't talking about GMO corn from the middle of nowhere in Nebraska, we're talking about the lettuce right off of highway 68. It's personal now and we can't just stand around and allow them to modify our county.

               While I was still in Salinas I took the opportunity to distribute more fliers. I went to Rollicks Coffee shop, Oldtown Booknook, and Cherry bean; very friendly and helpful people. They are places that remind you why Salinas is a wonderful little town. They are like little pockets of culture in a very industrial town.


Donating to Occupy Monsanto of Monterey

                   Thinking about donating to Occupy Monsanto of Monterey? Not sure about it yet? Consider this:

                     Local
                    When you donate to Occupy Monsanto of Monterey you are donating to a group of local activists who will use the money locally to make change on a local level. Just think, if you were to donate to a bigger global or national organization such as Greenpeace or NPR the money will go through a long complicated bureaucratic process, then when the money gets filter through all of the operating costs and employment cost there will be hardly any funds left for the cause you meant the money to go to. OMM isn't a bureaucracy; we are a grassroots group of committed activist who volunteer our own time because we want to see change today, not in 20 years.
                    Efficient
              Let's face it 20 buck to Greenpeace might as well be 20 cents, whereas donating even just a couple of dollars to OMM will have a huge impact and make it possible for us to create fliers, signs, props and other important items used for rallies. If we can spend less time worrying about how we are going to pay for our materials, we can have more time for thinking creatively and we will thus be more efficient.
                    Safety Net
                    OMM also hopes to be more aggressive than other Occupy movements. Your donation will ensure a safety net so we are able to take more risk during campaigns and protests. If we for example form a human chain around a Monsanto building and one of our protesters gets arrested we may have to pay for a bail for them. Even with non-violent direct action demonstrations these things happen and we need to be prepared for it. We would also like to hire a lawyer so we can fully know our rights and limitations.
                    Political
                    Don't believe in the power of protest? OMM will do more than just protest. We will work with the local government and businesses to install real change. Essentially, with enough funding we hope to be able to lobby and run campaigns for a Monterey government that supports reform of the food system.  
                    
Your gift can change the food system.

Thank you,
Mark Sarchet

 

 

Seminis Inc. and Beyond

           On April 22nd at 11AM a group of Monterey activists will bring signs and rally outside of the Seminis office at 590 Brunken Avenue, Salinas, CA. ( https://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/events/678269218869390/) Going after Seminis Inc., the subsidiary of Monsanto, is a step in the right direction but not the solution. Yet it plays an important role in our effort to voice our concerns and spread awareness about genetically modified foods. Spreading awareness is the most fundamental aspect of any movement, so the quote from Mao, "political power grows out of the barrel of a gun," should instead be "political power grows out of a word and is realized through the barrel of a gun." When people begin to say out loud, "I do not want to eat genetically modified food" things will begin to change. Yes we are telling it to Monsanto employees and Seminis employees, "We don't want your products!" and we should tell it to everyone: our friends and co-workers, our moms, our aunts, our doctors, teachers, preachers, life guards, bus drivers, foot massager-s, the FDA, the USA, Russian friends and foreign exchange students! Yes absolutely everyone. Indiscriminately inform and openly discuss to everyone - that's the foundation of Occupy Monsanto of Monterey and every other movement ever tried by mankind. In a word - Speak up! Say something about it! Go to your window and yell "I'm as mad as hell and I'm not eating GMO's!"
                       But that's not all, holding a sign and spreading awareness is just the beginning. Occupy Monsanto of Monterey is an aggressive (yet non-violent) political movement. We will push the envelope to the brim. We will have extreme and radical campaigns against biotech. Holding a sign is important but further actions are necessary. Direct action demonstrations will be used routinely as part of our strategy to hurt biotech companies and implement municipal laws against them. We will take inspiration from other movements such as the Tar Sands Blockade, Sea Shepard, even Earth First and the Animal Liberation Front. There will be many extreme legal strategies used and discussed in the process of ridding Monterey county of GMOs.
                       After Seminis Inc. we will target the city of Monterey and protest for legislative reform on a local level. Salinas is one of the Most important agriculture areas in the country, and Monterey bay has one of the most important and delicate ecosystems in the country. These areas need to be protected from the ever reaching grip of Monsanto and other biotech companies. Particularly, GM pollen drift poses a real risk for the Monterey area. Monterey county is currently not a non-GMO area and our local government hasn't made progressive efforts to do so and thus the responsibility falls on the people. We will lobby and protest Monterey to make it a non-GMO area.
                      Other goals include working with local grocery stores, schools, and other places of business to carry more non-GMO alteratives: for example try finding Nature's Path Organics or Dr. Bronner's soaps in a Target in Salinas - not possible. We will work to change that. Also we will do aggressive campaigns against Fast Food chains. Perhaps we will have rallies in which we have giant pictures of CAFOs or Feed lots in front of a McDonald's or such place to provide transparency to consumers.
                       There's a lot coming and a solution is being found. Occupy Monsanto of Monterey wants to solve the problems that face our food system and not just talk about them. We want action now! Transparency, liberty, and pure natural food are rights we believe all people should have. Join us today to help resolve these issues and change the world.
         
Follow us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/pages/Occupy-Monsanto-of-Monterey/138695442953006

Email us at occupymonsantomonterey@yahoo.com

Tell a friend about us,
Tell your mom about us!

Please donate to the cause! All funds will be use solely on Occupy Monsanto of Monterey!

Sincerely,
Mark Sarchet