Florida Interfaith Fast for Farmworker Justice
This July, clergy, faith leaders, and communities from around Florida — the state with the largest number of Wendy’s restaurants in the country — are embarking upon on a month-long rolling fast to heighten the call to Wendy’s to respect farmworker human rights by joining the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Fair Food Program.
Interested in participating? Email us at [email protected] to sign up!
Sign the petition below to support all the faith leaders and communities taking on this sacrifice for justice in July.
In late March, 19 Ohio State University students and alumni began a landmark week-long fast aimed at exposing the injustices that were enabled through OSU’s continued business with Wendy’s, which culminated in a moving 500-strong march of farmworkers and allies from across the country through Wendy’s hometown of Columbus, OH. That fast became the catalyst for a monumental rolling student fast that spread like wildfire to over a dozen universities, involving hundreds of students throughout the month of April.
Faith leaders and faith communities from across the country stood with these courageous students in their sacrifice by joining in a National Day of Prayer and Fasting on the fifth day of the OSU students’ fast; and penning powerful statements of support, such as those by the Presbyterian Church (USA), the Disciples of Christ, National Farm Worker Ministry, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, and T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights. And in May, students and professors, faith leaders, food justice and human rights advocates, and community members joined together to take the moral call directly to Wendy’s leadership at the company’s annual meeting of shareholders in Dublin, OH.
And yet, Wendy’s continues to disparage the calls for accountability and farm labor justice from farmworkers and consumers alike.
This July, people of faith in Florida — the state with the largest number of Wendy’s restaurants in the country — are taking up the students’ fast to draw attention to the impact of Wendy’s inaction. In the long tradition of fasting for social justice, dozens of clergy and their communities begin a month-long rolling fast to prayerfully enjoin Wendy’s to stand with farmworkers in creating dignity in the fields.
FAST UPDATES
Fast update 7/14/2017: Interfaith Worker Justice endorses fast, and participants reflect “I took part in a rolling fast by clergy…I didn’t eat any tomatoes. But I had water to drink and a clean bathroom, and I didn’t spend the day looking over my shoulder in fear…”
These faith leaders have committed to fasting on the following days throughout the month:
7/1 – Rev. Diane Langworthy, New Smyrna Beach UCC
7/3 – Rev. Deborah Kaiser-Cross, Naples UCC
7/4 – Rev. Patricia Carque, UCC
7/5 – Rev. David Minnick, UCC
7/6 – Rev. Ngan Ling Lung, UCC chaplain at Florida Hospital
7/7 – Rev. Leigh McCaffrey, UCC
7/8 – Rev. David Bucey, Ft. Myers Congregational UCC
7/10 – Rev. Alan Coe, Mayflower Congregational UCC in Naples
Nancy Metz, Grace UMC in Cape Coral
7/11 – T’ruah rabbis in Florida
Rev. Clarke Campbell Evans, Director of Missional Engagement, Florida Conference of the UMC
7/12 – Rev. Bob Murphy, UU of Tarpon Springs
Rev. Dr. John Danner, Sanibel Congregational UCC
7/13 – Wesley Snedeker, Student Pastor at Naples UCC
7/14 – Rev. Roy Terry, Cornerstone UMC in Naples
7/15 – Wesley Snedeker, Student Pastor at Naples UCC
7/16 – Rev. John Vertigan, Conference Minister of the UCC Florida Conference
7/17 – Brian McLaren, Christian author, speaker, and activist
Rev. Leslie Etheredge, Western Regional Minister of the UCC Florida Conference
Nancy Metz, Grace UMC in Cape Coral
7/18 – Rev. Patricia Carque, UCC
7/19 – Rev. Steve Heath, Union Congregational Church in Holly Hill
7/20 – Rev. Beverly Duncan, Naples UCC
Rev. Tony Fisher, UU Congregation of Greater Naples
7/21 – Rev. Susan Sherwood, UCC
Teña T Nock-Hope, Student Pastor at First United Church of Tampa
7/22 – Pastor Andrew Hudson, Covenant Mennonite Fellowship in Sarasota
7/23 – Pastor Andrew Hudson, Covenant Mennonite Fellowship in Sarasota
Joshua Baudin, Youth Minister at St. Mark’s Episcopal on Marco Island
7/24 – Bud Schroeder, Naples UCC
Nancy Metz, Grace UMC in Cape Coral
7/25 – Rev. Dr. Jim Boler, UCC
7/26 – Rev. Tom Brenner, UCC
Rev. Dr. Bernice Powell Jackson, First United Church of Tampa
7/27 – Rev. Deb Kunkel, Sanibel Congregational UCC
Rev. Sandy Boler, UCC
7/28 – Rev. John Rohde, UCC
Rev. Nancy Rohde, UCC
7/29 – Rev. Paul Werner, St. Andrews UCC in Sarasota
7/30 – Interfaith service at 3:00pm at Naples UCC (details)
Public witness at 5:00pm at Wendy’s in Naples (details)
Rev. David Kaiser-Cross, Naples UCC
7/31 – Peggy Huddleston, UCC
Nancy Metz, Grace UMC in Cape Coral
