Scarlett Johansson, SodaStream & the Superbowl

Published on Portside (https://portside.org) Scarlett Johansson, SodaStream & the Superbowl Nancy Kricorian; Interfaith Boycott Coalition; Assoc Press Thursday, January 23, 2014 • Scarlett Johansson, SodaStream & the Superbowl - Nancy Kricorian for CODEPINK • TAKE ACTION - Send a letter telling Scarlett Johansson to drop SodaStream • SodaStream Boycott - Who's behind this US boycott? (Interfaith Boycott Coalition) • Oxfam pans Scarlett Johansson for Israeli deal - Josef Federman, Associated Press (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) Scarlett Johansson, SodaStream & the Superbowl By Nancy Kricorian for CODEPINK Last week it was announced that Scarlett Johansson, a movie star and Oxfam Goodwill Ambassador, was the new Global Brand Ambassador [1] for occupation profiteer SodaStream. Johansson will be featured in a SodaStream ad during the Superbowl - the average cost for running a 30-second spot during the game is $4 million. Johansson's new job reminded us of the days when starlet Kristin Davis worked as a spokesmodel for Ahava cosmetics while serving as an Oxfam Goodwill Ambassador. Back in 2009, Oxfam, which has an explicit policy against Israeli settlement goods, suspended Davis [2] from publicity work for the duration of her Ahava contract. In the four-and-a-half years since Ahava's Davis publicity fiasco, mainstream knowledge about and condemnation of Israel's occupation and its profiteers have grown. Within days of SodaStream's Scarlett Johansson announcement, articles linking the company to settlement expansion and land theft appeared on prominent blogs at The New Yorker [3] and The Jewish Daily Forward [4]. [BOLD] Although SodaStream products are labeled as "Made in Israel," its main production facility is in the industrial zone of Mishor Edomin, an illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank. As a result, SodaStream enjoys cheap land and water, confiscated from the indigenous Palestinian owners; a captive Palestinian labor force; tax benefits; and lax regulation of environmental and labor protection laws. For more information on SodaStream you can read the report [5] from our partners at Who Profits. credit - CodePink Last week we joined other human rights groups in contacting Oxfam, asking them to pressure Johansson to drop SodaStream, and, if she doesn't, requesting that Oxfam suspend Johansson. We expect to hear from Oxfam within days, and we are hoping that they do the right thing, as they did with Kristin Davis. But in the meantime, you can take action today by sending a letter to Scarlett Johansson [6]. Occupation isn't green or guilt free, and she should not let SodaStream use her good name to market illegal settlement goods. Thanks for supporting human rights and international law. Thanks for helping to take the profit out of occupation. [Nancy Kricorian is part of the national staff and the coordinator for the Stolen Beauty Campaign [7], which boycotts illegal Israeli settlement product Ahava Cosmetics. In addition to working with CODEPINK, Nancy is a writer and a novelist. She is a member of PEN USA and on the board of the Armenia Tree Project.] TAKE ACTION - Send a letter telling Scarlett Johansson to drop SodaStream Tell Scarlett Johansson to Drop SodaStream! [8] credit - CODEPINK // Graphic by Stephanie Westbrook Scarlett, Don't tarnish your name by working for SodaStream Dear Scarlett Johansson, Thank you for caring about the environment, and for your inspiring work as an Oxfam Goodwill Ambassador. But please don't let your good name be tarnished by an association with occupation profiteer SodaStream. Although SodaStream products are labeled as "Made in Israel," its main production facility is in the industrial zone of Mishor Edomin, an illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank. By hiring you as their "brand ambassador," SodaStream wants to use your beautiful face and your image of wholesomeness to cover up its crimes. The company tries to hide its complicity in land theft and exploitation of captive labor by hiding behind an eco-friendly façade. There is nothing green about occupying other people's land, pillaging their resources, hiring captive labor, or misleading consumers about the origins of one's goods. Please don't allow SodaStream to use your good name to market illegal settlement products. Sincerely, (your name) Send your email letters to: Troy Bailey Bailey Brand Management Email:troy@bbm.la [9] Emily Clay True Public Relations Email:emily@truepublicrelations.com [10] SodaStream Boycott - Interfaith Boycott Coalition Who's behind this US boycott? [11] The Interfaith Boycott Coalition is a group of individuals from faith-based organizations and institutions who share a common goal of bringing justice to the Palestinians... The Interfaith Boycott Coalition includes the organizations Israel Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church (USA), Jewish Voice for Peace, American Muslims for Palestine, American Friends Service Committee, Episcopal Peace Fellowship's Palestine Israel Network, Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East, Friends of Sabeel North America, United Church of Christ, Church of the Brethren, United Methodist Kairos Response and members of the Catholic, Lutheran, Mennonite and Quaker traditions. The Interfaith Boycott Coalition operates as a network of the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, a coalition of nearly 400 US organizations. credit - SodaStream Boycott, Asheville, North Carolina SodaStream's main production site is in Mishor Edomim, an Israeli settlement industrial park located in the West Bank. [11] The land where the SodaStream factory is located was illegally confiscated by the Israeli military occupation authorities from Palestinian owners. Israeli settlements are an impediment to peace and violate international law. Since 1968 the US government has called on Israel to stop building and expanding settlements in the West Bank. Companies should not profit from products that are made on stolen property or that perpetuate the Israeli occupation of the West Bank The Consumer Boycott From www.bdsmovement.net: [12] Individual consumers can show their opposition to Israel's violations by participating in a consumer boycott of companies, goods and services involved in Israeli policies violating Palestinian human rights and international law. A consumer boycott works in two ways: firstly by generating public awareness about Israeli apartheid and occupation as well as international support for it and secondly by applying economic pressure for change. While boycott is an individual act, it becomes much more powerful if it is promoted collectively and finds strong support in organizations, movements and communities willing to promote the boycott. Across the world, supporters of Palestinian rights are advocating a boycotts adopting a number of diverse actions: Pickets of retailers, letter-writing campaigns, pressure from civil society organizations such as NGOs, faith groups and trade unions. Popular pressure has forced retailers to stop selling Israeli produce and produce from illegal settlements in particular. The consumer boycott is beginning to bite, too: a fifth of Israeli exporters reported a drop in demand as a result of the boycott in the wake of the Gaza massacre in 2008-'09. Oxfam pans Scarlett Johansson for Israeli deal By Josef Federman, Associated Press January 23, 2014 Seattle Post-Intelligencer [13] JERUSALEM (AP) - Oxfam [14] International is criticizing Scarlett Johansson [15] over her new ad campaign for an Israeli company that operates in the West Bank. Israeli drink maker SodaStream [16] International Ltd. recently signed the U.S. actress as its first "global brand ambassador." She is to appear in a television ad during the Super Bowl on Feb. 2. SodaStream has come under fire from pro-Palestinian activists for maintaining a large factory in an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, a territory captured by Israel in 1967 and claimed by the Palestinians. Johansson has served as a global ambassador for Oxfam since 2005, raising funds and promoting awareness about global poverty. The humanitarian group said that while it respects the independence of its ambassadors, it opposes "all trade" from Israeli settlements, claiming they are illegal and deny Palestinian rights. "We have made our concerns known to Ms. Johansson and we are now engaged in a dialogue on these important issues," it said. SodaStream machines allow consumers to make their own carbonated drinks at home and add a variety of flavors. Johansson has called her partnership with the company a "no brainer," saying it is a healthy and environmentally friendly product. Representatives for Johansson did not return messages seeking comment. SodaStream says its West Bank factory is one of about 25 production facilities worldwide and employs nearly 550 Palestinians and gives them equal benefits as Israeli workers. Source URL: https://portside.org/2014-01-24/scarlett-johansson-sodastream-superbowl Links: [1] http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sodastream-unveils-scarlett-johansson-as-its-first-ever-global-brand-ambassador-239742871.html [2] http://pagesix.com/2009/08/06/sex-star-oxfam-part-ways/ [3] http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/currency/2014/01/scarjo-sodastream-and-the-politics-of-celebrity-ambassadors.html [4] http://blogs.forward.com/forward-thinking/190881/scarlett-johansson-no-guilt-about-sodastream/ [5] http://www.whoprofits.org/company/sodastream-soda-club-group [6] http://codepink.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=PBIAmazGSF83MzEycEumGXNTm%2BZGs8XK [7] http://www.stolenbeauty.org%20/ [8] http://codepink.salsalabs.com/o/424/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=7193 [9] mailto:troy@bbm.la [10] mailto:emily@truepublicrelations.com [11] http://sodastreamboycott.org/ [12] http://www.bdsmovement.net: [13] http://seattle.icito.com/oxfam-pans-scarlett-johansson-for-israeli-deal/ [14] http://www.seattlepi.com/?controllerName=search&action=search&channel=news&search=1&inlineLink=1&query=%22Oxfam%22 [15] http://www.seattlepi.com/?controllerName=search&action=search&channel=news&search=1&inlineLink=1&query=%22Scarlett+Johansson%22 [16] http://www.seattlepi.com/?controllerName=search&action=search&channel=news&search=1&inlineLink=1&query=%22Sodastream%22 Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218. Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/ "The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs