Shop ethically in Madison, Wisconsin.
Join the No Appetite for Apartheid Campaign!
Stand in Solidarity with the people of Palestine by avoiding Israeli products.
Wisconsin imports roughly $124 million in goods from Israel every year, and the U.S. is the worlds largest importer of Israeli food products. Israeli agricultural goods are often produced in illegal settlements on occupied Palestinian territories and rely on the exploitation of low-paid Palestinian labor. In this way, the food industry profits from and helps sustain Israeli settler colonialism and apartheid.
No Appetite for Apartheid (NA4A) is a national campaign inspired by the fight against apartheid in South Africa and aligned with the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement.
Here in Madison, our campaign focuses on canvassing local businesses to learn whether they carry Israeli products and asking them to remove the products from their shelves, and declare themselves an Apartheid-Free Store.
We need your help! Come join us!
Will you pledge to avoid buying Israeli and complicit products?
Want to become an Apartheid-Free business? Let us help!
Why a food boycott?
Boycotts, and specifically food boycotts, have been employed throughout history to use economic pressure as a non-violent tactic against entities perpetuating injustice and to promote social, economic, or political justice. Although unconstitutional, anti-BDS (boycott, divestment, and sanctions) laws have been passed in certain states in recent years (including in Wisconsin). However, the right to boycott is still protected in the United States.
The NA4A campaign is inspired by many examples of successful food boycotts in the United States and around the world. Most notably, we are inspired by the Delano grape boycott of the 1960s. Filipino agricultural workers went on strike against grape growers in the Delano, California area, and organized with a group of mostly Mexican workers. A new union, United Farm Workers, was formed which marked a turning point in the labor movement. This achievement helped establish boycotts as a powerful nonviolent tool for social and economic justice.
Dolores Huerta led the United Farm Workers (UFW) national boycott of California table grapes. Organizers and volunteers traveled across the country to persuade consumers to boycott California table grapes and to pressure retailers into only selling union grapes. Volunteers passed out flyers at stores and engaged shoppers. They canvassed to build support. From 1967 to 1969, U.S. grape sales dropped between 30% and 40%. An estimated 14 million people boycotted the grapes and many stores adopted a “union grapes only” policy. In 1970, major grape growers in the area agreed to negotiate and sign contracts with the UFW.
The success of this boycott and unionizing effort is instructive and inspirational for us in the following ways:
- The boycott engaged and mobilized a nationwide network that reached local communities.
- Because it was based on food, the issues were made tangible and intimate for consumers.
- Retailers were convinced that complying was in their economic interest.
- The boycott was a sustained movement rather than a brief episode.
Help us make Madison an ethical place to shop.
Learn about the campaign,the brands and products to boycott here in the toolkit.
Ready to make meaningful change? Take the pledge!
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Contact us at NA4AMADISON@gmail.com