SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A Wayfair employee speaks to the crowd during the Wayfair walkout in Copley Square on June 26, 2019 in Boston. Wayfair sold more than $200,000 in bedroom furniture to a Texas detention facility for migrant children. (Photo: Scott Eisen/Getty Images)
At #WayfairWalkout Actions, Workers Denounce Company Profiting From Child Detention
"The safety and well-being of immigrant children is always worth fighting for."
Jun 26, 2019
Protesters filled Boston's Copley Square Wednesday afternoon as part of the "Wayfair Walkout," where the company's employees staged a work stoppage to protest the retailer profiting from President Donald Trump's child detention policies.
Hundreds of Wayfair workers and supporters took part in the Wednesday action both in Boston and in Brunswick, Maine. The Boston Globereported that management "indicated there will be no retaliation for employees who participate in the walkout."
\u201cI have no idea how to count crowds, but here\u2019s the view of #WayfairWalkout from the steps of Trinity Church on Copley Square \ud83c\udf39\u270a\ufe0f\u201d— Natalie Shure (@Natalie Shure) 1561567645
The protest stems from worker unrest over Wayfair's contracting with BCFS, a company running child detention facilities.
"We cannot be a nation that stands for locking up little children. What these workers are doing is brave and necessary."
--Sen. Bernie Sanders
In a letter to Wayfair leadership on June 21, a group of 547 employees called on the company to reject the contract because "the current actions of the United States and their contractors at the southern border do not represent an ethical partnership Wayfair should choose to be a part of."
After the company leadership refused, the group asked that the $86,000 in profits from the contract be donated to immigration legal advocacy group RAICES. Wayfair's leadership on Wednesday instead announced they would donate $100,000 to the Red Cross--an attempt to defuse the situation that was seen as insufficient.
"This is great news! And proof that Wayfair can and does do good," said the walkout's Twitter account. "However, the Red Cross has nothing to do with these ICE-operated facilities."
\u201chttps://t.co/ojaRQmDtPC\u201d— wayfairwalkout (@wayfairwalkout) 1561572624
As Common Dreams reported, the protest was publicized Tuesday and took off after receiving the endorsement of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), RAICES, and other prominent progressives.
Later on Tuesday, the walkout received the backing of Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), both of whom are vying for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020.
"The safety and well-being of immigrant children is always worth fighting for," tweeted Warren.
In his endorsement of the protest, Sanders praised the morality of the action.
"We cannot be a nation that stands for locking up little children," said Sanders. "What these workers are doing is brave and necessary."
Wayfair stock has dropped more than five dollars a share since Tuesday morning.
Watch speeches from the action, via ABC:
\u201cLIVE: Wayfair employees walkout to protest decision to sell furniture to gov't contractor that runs detention center for migrant kids. https://t.co/LxMk8SNhVd\u201d— ABC News (@ABC News) 1561571365
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Protesters filled Boston's Copley Square Wednesday afternoon as part of the "Wayfair Walkout," where the company's employees staged a work stoppage to protest the retailer profiting from President Donald Trump's child detention policies.
Hundreds of Wayfair workers and supporters took part in the Wednesday action both in Boston and in Brunswick, Maine. The Boston Globereported that management "indicated there will be no retaliation for employees who participate in the walkout."
\u201cI have no idea how to count crowds, but here\u2019s the view of #WayfairWalkout from the steps of Trinity Church on Copley Square \ud83c\udf39\u270a\ufe0f\u201d— Natalie Shure (@Natalie Shure) 1561567645
The protest stems from worker unrest over Wayfair's contracting with BCFS, a company running child detention facilities.
"We cannot be a nation that stands for locking up little children. What these workers are doing is brave and necessary."
--Sen. Bernie Sanders
In a letter to Wayfair leadership on June 21, a group of 547 employees called on the company to reject the contract because "the current actions of the United States and their contractors at the southern border do not represent an ethical partnership Wayfair should choose to be a part of."
After the company leadership refused, the group asked that the $86,000 in profits from the contract be donated to immigration legal advocacy group RAICES. Wayfair's leadership on Wednesday instead announced they would donate $100,000 to the Red Cross--an attempt to defuse the situation that was seen as insufficient.
"This is great news! And proof that Wayfair can and does do good," said the walkout's Twitter account. "However, the Red Cross has nothing to do with these ICE-operated facilities."
\u201chttps://t.co/ojaRQmDtPC\u201d— wayfairwalkout (@wayfairwalkout) 1561572624
As Common Dreams reported, the protest was publicized Tuesday and took off after receiving the endorsement of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), RAICES, and other prominent progressives.
Later on Tuesday, the walkout received the backing of Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), both of whom are vying for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020.
"The safety and well-being of immigrant children is always worth fighting for," tweeted Warren.
In his endorsement of the protest, Sanders praised the morality of the action.
"We cannot be a nation that stands for locking up little children," said Sanders. "What these workers are doing is brave and necessary."
Wayfair stock has dropped more than five dollars a share since Tuesday morning.
Watch speeches from the action, via ABC:
\u201cLIVE: Wayfair employees walkout to protest decision to sell furniture to gov't contractor that runs detention center for migrant kids. https://t.co/LxMk8SNhVd\u201d— ABC News (@ABC News) 1561571365
Protesters filled Boston's Copley Square Wednesday afternoon as part of the "Wayfair Walkout," where the company's employees staged a work stoppage to protest the retailer profiting from President Donald Trump's child detention policies.
Hundreds of Wayfair workers and supporters took part in the Wednesday action both in Boston and in Brunswick, Maine. The Boston Globereported that management "indicated there will be no retaliation for employees who participate in the walkout."
\u201cI have no idea how to count crowds, but here\u2019s the view of #WayfairWalkout from the steps of Trinity Church on Copley Square \ud83c\udf39\u270a\ufe0f\u201d— Natalie Shure (@Natalie Shure) 1561567645
The protest stems from worker unrest over Wayfair's contracting with BCFS, a company running child detention facilities.
"We cannot be a nation that stands for locking up little children. What these workers are doing is brave and necessary."
--Sen. Bernie Sanders
In a letter to Wayfair leadership on June 21, a group of 547 employees called on the company to reject the contract because "the current actions of the United States and their contractors at the southern border do not represent an ethical partnership Wayfair should choose to be a part of."
After the company leadership refused, the group asked that the $86,000 in profits from the contract be donated to immigration legal advocacy group RAICES. Wayfair's leadership on Wednesday instead announced they would donate $100,000 to the Red Cross--an attempt to defuse the situation that was seen as insufficient.
"This is great news! And proof that Wayfair can and does do good," said the walkout's Twitter account. "However, the Red Cross has nothing to do with these ICE-operated facilities."
\u201chttps://t.co/ojaRQmDtPC\u201d— wayfairwalkout (@wayfairwalkout) 1561572624
As Common Dreams reported, the protest was publicized Tuesday and took off after receiving the endorsement of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), RAICES, and other prominent progressives.
Later on Tuesday, the walkout received the backing of Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), both of whom are vying for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020.
"The safety and well-being of immigrant children is always worth fighting for," tweeted Warren.
In his endorsement of the protest, Sanders praised the morality of the action.
"We cannot be a nation that stands for locking up little children," said Sanders. "What these workers are doing is brave and necessary."
Wayfair stock has dropped more than five dollars a share since Tuesday morning.
Watch speeches from the action, via ABC:
\u201cLIVE: Wayfair employees walkout to protest decision to sell furniture to gov't contractor that runs detention center for migrant kids. https://t.co/LxMk8SNhVd\u201d— ABC News (@ABC News) 1561571365
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.