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Archdiocese of Los Angeles
Sept. 12, 2001
Mr. Emil Brolick
President
Taco Bell Corp.
17901 Von Karman
Irvine, CA 92614
Dear Mr. Brolick:
For some thirty-six years now I have been very closely
involved with efforts here in California to improve
wages, benefits, and working conditions of the countless
numbers of people who labor day and night in the fields,
orchards, and vineyards of our country.
I am writing you at this time to plead with you to
exercise the leadership of the Taco Bell corporation
in protecting and enhancing workers rights in the tomato
industry, especially in Florida, where the Taco Bell
Corporation receives so much of its tomato product.
As the President of one of the largest consumers of
tomato products from Florida, you are in a very special
and unique position to demand greater accountability
on the part of the growers and producers of tomato products
from Florida.
As you probably know, a very slight increase in the
cost of those tomato products, if passed on to the workers,
would greatly improve their wages, benefits and working
conditions.
I am writing to you to implore you to use your very
special position of leadership to assist some of the
poorest members of our society.
Looking forward to hearing from you, and offering you
my assistance in any way that I can be of help, I am
Sincerely yours in Christ,
His Eminence
Cardinal Roger Mahoney
Archbishop of Los Angeles
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Diocese of Orange
August 10, 2001
Emil J. Brolick
President
Taco Bell Corp.
17901 Von Karman
Irvine, California 92614
Dear Mr. Brolick:
I am writing you to ask for your support for the efforts
of the Florida farmworker organization, the Coalition
of Immokalee Workers (CIW).
I met with workers from the Coalition and have consulted
with the Most Reverend John Nevins, the Bishop of Venice,
Florida regarding the efforts of the CIW.
I understand that they are seeking a living wage and
better working conditions for the workers who pick Taco
Bell's tomatoes. Representatives of the workers are
eager to discuss their situation with you.
Please give consideration to such a meeting. Encourage
your tomato contractors to negotiate with the CIW.
I am available personally to discuss this matter with
you.
Respectfully,
Most Reverend Jaime Soto
Auxiliary Bishop
Diocese of Orange
c: Most Reverend John Nevins, Bishop of Venice, Florida
Cardinal Roger Mahoney, Archbishop of Los Angeles
Most Revervend Tom Brown, Bishop of Orange, California
Lucas Benitez, Coalition of Immokalee Workers
September 24, 2001
Mr. Emil J. Brolick President and Chief Concept Officer
Taco Bell Corp.
17901 Von Karman
Irvine, California 92614
Dear Mr. Brolick:
We are writing to you today from the Coalition of
Immokalee Workers (CIW). In a letter to your company
on January 24, 2001, we explained that Taco Bell, as
a major buyer of fresh tomatoes, occupies a position
of great influence over -- and thereby moral responsibility
for -- the working conditions facing the farmworkers
who pick the tomatoes that go into Taco Bell’s
products. We asked that you meet with us to discuss
those working conditions and to examine ways that Taco
Bell could use its influence to bring about mutually
beneficial solutions to the problems faced by tomato
pickers here in Florida. To date, we have received no
response to this request.
Today, September 24, 2001, was to be the day that
the CIW arrived at Taco Bell’s offices in Irvine,
accompanied by thousands of supporters from across the
country. Our presence at your offices was to be the
culmination of the “Taco Bell Truth Tour”
-- a two-week, cross-country journey led by farmworkers
and students to raise consumer awareness of the ties
between Taco Bell and the sweatshop conditions in Florida’s
tomato fields.
While thousands of consumers across the country had
already dedicated a tremendous amount of time and effort
to ensuring the success of the tour, the terrible events
of September 11th stopped us -- and the rest of the
country -- in our tracks. We immediately postponed the
tour, issuing the following statement:
"Out of respect for the thousands of innocent
people who lost their lives so horribly in the tragic
events of September 11, the Coalition of Immokalee
Workers, the Student/Farmworker Alliance, and our
friends and colleagues across the country have decided
to postpone the Taco Bell Truth Tour, originally planned
for September 13-30. We will announce the new tour
dates at an appropriate time.
We join the families and friends of the victims
in mourning the senseless loss of so many beautiful,
beloved lives. Our thoughts and prayers are with them
in these most difficult times."
We all have learned a great deal from the tragedy
of September 11th. Perhaps chief among those lessons
is the fact that, in the final analysis, no business
is more important than the people that dedicate their
lives to its success. Over these past two weeks we have
witnessed how -- even on Wall Street, from its top executives
to the immigrant workers who clean their offices for
minimum wage -- there lies at the heart of every American
business a delicate web of human lives. Though at most
times invisible, at times of tragedy this web is revealed
to be the steel at the foundation of this country’s
great resilience and the ultimate source of its economic
strength. Sadly, however, it appears that your company
continues to stubbornly insist on placing profits over
people, refusing to acknowledge the ties between Taco
Bell’s profits and the poverty of thousands of
hardworking farmworkers.
Taco Bell should not continue to miss the historic
opportunity presented by our request to meet and discuss
the labor conditions on the farms that produce your
tomatoes. By agreeing to sit with CIW representatives
and taking concrete steps to address conditions in the
fields, Taco Bell could not only contribute significantly
to improving the lives of thousands of farmworkers,
it could also dramatically distinguish itself from its
competitors and take the lead -- and the moral high
ground -- in moving your industry toward a future in
which fast food is also fair food. Though you may not
yet believe it, that is something your consumers want
and would support, especially the young people that
are such an important part of Taco Bell’s market.
In closing, we ask once again that you meet with us,
representatives of the CIW, to discuss these issues
and begin to examine positive solutions to the problems
we face as farmworkers picking tomatoes for Taco Bell.
In the end, we hope that such talks can lead to a three-part
dialogue joining farmworkers, growers, and Taco Bell
representatives in an effort to forge a truly fair and
sustainable relationship that will carry our industry
well into the future. Sincerely,
Lucas Benitez, CIW
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