Walmart Protesters Greatly Outnumber Walmart Supporters at NYC Hearing

by Lauren Kelley · 2011-02-10 05:00:00 UTC
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The much-ballyhooed New York City Walmart hearing has finally taken place. This is the hearing which Walmart itself refused to attend, but which was expected to draw such a large anti-Walmart crowd that organizers had to reschedule so they could find a larger venue.

Turns out the organizers were right.

The anti-Walmart crowd was huge, so much so that some people had to be turned away at the door. Jobs With Justice New York reported on the Walmart Free NYC rally held at the event:

"Braving twenty-degree weather, over four hundred members of the Walmart Free NYC Coalition showed up on the steps of City hall last Thursday to oppose Walmart’s plans to open stores in New York City, with at least a hundred more turned away at the gates."

"Those in the crowd belonged to small business associations, community organizations, unions, and elected office. They hailed from all five boroughs, many ethnicities, and a broad array of economic backgrounds. Some hailed from respected academic institutions, others were concerned residents who heard about the rally from conversations on the street. Though diverse, their message was unified: Walmart can take its plans to destroy jobs and close local businesses and go home."

Tell Bloomberg you don't want Walmart to lower wages and kill jobs in, and you think he should reconsider before it's too late.

Gothamist confirms the reports of a strong anti-Walmart presence at the rally, and adds that Walmart supporters were "hardly noticeable." The ones who were there were pushing a bizarro conspiracy theory about how anti-Walmart city leaders are Muslim extremists... or something... I'm not joking. Their signs read, "Say yes to Wal-Mart, no to the mega-mosque! ... Yes to good business! No to Islamic supremacism!"

So if you're keeping score at home, the hearing attracted:

  • New Yorkers who don't want a Walmart in their city: 400+

  • New Yorkers who think Walmart will ward off Islamic supremacism: a few

  • Walmart representatives: 0

And yet Walmart is almost certain to win this battle! The company's first New York City location, in the East New York section of Brooklyn, has already been picked out, and Mayor Bloomberg is still rolling out the red carpet for the retailer.

Tell Bloomberg you don't want Walmart to lower wages and kill jobs in, and you think he should reconsider before it's too late.

Photo credit: christoph.ch

Lauren Kelley is an associate editor at AlterNet and a freelance writer. She has volunteered for Planned Parenthood of North Texas, Amnesty International, 826NYC and other groups.

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