{"id":376,"date":"2017-06-12T15:54:59","date_gmt":"2017-06-12T19:54:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.targetedtangents.com\/mag\/?p=376"},"modified":"2018-03-11T20:01:34","modified_gmt":"2018-03-12T00:01:34","slug":"7-steps-aware-consumerism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.targetedtangents.com\/mag\/2017\/06\/12\/7-steps-aware-consumerism\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Steps to Aware Consumerism with a Dash of Sanity"},"content":{"rendered":"

With Brand Trump hawking everything from shoes to hotels on the back steps of the White House, the line between consumerism and politics has almost completely disappeared. Money and politics isn’t a new song. The Koch Brothers have been funding the Tea Party for years. Chik-fil-A and Hobby Lobby have done their part in leading the anti-LGBT chorus all the way to the Supreme Court. On the left, we’ve certainly taken more than one spin on the dance floor. But liberals have been slower to embrace our own daily consumerism as a political instrument.<\/p>\n

More often, the left has withheld its purchasing power in the form of boycotts, with varying levels of success. The Montgomery Bus Boycott in the ’50s and the Grape Boycott in the ’70s are shining moments of political activism, but both cases were more than consumer actions. Recently, there’s been #GrabYourWallet<\/a> and #DeleteUber, but Ivanka’s sales are up, and too many of us mutter, \u201cI need to install the Lyft app,\u201d as we\u2019re clicking Uber.<\/p>\n

Many economists are doubtful boycotts work in the long term. Various Christian groups have been boycotting Disney for years with little effect. At best, boycotts are effective as part of a larger, organized, strategic campaign that involves legal and political actions. Yes, there’s the argument that, in the days of social media, things could change. Getting the word out about corporate misdeeds is certainly easier and faster. But let’s be honest. Even though I’ve received countless emails with the list of Koch Brother companies, I still buy Vanity Fair napkins at Costco. After 35 minutes pushing an increasingly heavy cart, all I want to do is get through the checkout line with my giant bag of walnuts and family pack of organic chickens. So I grab the napkin brand I’ve bought for years.<\/p>\n

I needed a plan.<\/p>\n

And not just a plan to avoid companies that support politics that I object to, like the Koch Brothers’. A plan that would help me target companies that support my progressive values. The right has been far more effective than the left at aligning themselves with corporations to promote and fund their values. Walmart, the largest employer in the U.S., may be the equivalent to the Evil Empire on my social media feeds, but the company has earned a lot of goodwill on the right by supporting open carry laws and union busting as well as distributing fresh water to flood victims.<\/p>\n

On the left, we need to do a better job of supporting the companies that share our values and letting them know that their stands on social and political issues factor into our purchasing decisions.<\/p>\n

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  1. Personal Top 10:<\/strong> Figure out what corporations you are aligned with. Think about the products and companies you return to over and over, not just weekly but on an annual basis. These are the companies you’re aligned with \u2013 and have the most influence over. If you read my post Aware Consumerism: Putting Our Money Where Our Heart Is<\/a>, you already know that my top ten includes Starbucks, Apple, Coke, and Amazon, but there’s also Trader Joe\u2019s, Subaru, Lush Cosmetics, Essie Nail Polish, and of course, Vanity Fair Napkins.<\/li>\n
  2. What Matters Most:<\/strong> Figure out what you actually care about. Pick three or four issues that will make or break your decision to continue to shop with a company. My issues pretty much line up with my voting record: Pro-choice\/women, pro-LGBT rights, and pro-public schools. I care about many other issues, but these are the ones for which I’ll change my behavior. Given a choice, I’ll buy from a company that doesn’t test on animals, but it’s not an issue that will make me walk away from a company. But I will never set foot in Hobby Lobby again.<\/li>\n
  3. Behind the Curtain:<\/strong> Unless you\u2019re shopping exclusively at the farmer\u2019s markets and spinning your own wool, a large percentage of the brands you purchase are owned by giant multi-national corporations. A quick internet search will usually uncover who owns what, or at least the first layer of ownership. Essie Nail Polish maker of my beloved Off Tropic Green started as an independent company but in 2010 was bought by L’Oreal, which itself is partially owned by Nestl\u00e9.<\/li>\n
  4. Dump These Companies Now:<\/strong> There are basically three types of companies: ones that actively support your values, ones that actively oppose your values, and ones that avoid taking a stand or are somewhere in the middle. Companies in the last group you can influence, Your job is to figure out which is which.
    \nHere are four easy ones to avoid that are actively opposing progressive values:<\/p>\n