Black Friday, Corporate Responsibility, and Walmart

by: satyr9us

Fri Dec 05, 2008 at 04:06 PM CST

This is because of my association with Wake-Up Wal-Mart and my dedication to the group's agenda.

Generally in this pursuit, I oscillate between a tone of detached snark and one of outraged derision toward the company, so I've been fairly described as having "an axe to grind."

But I've been speechless since Black Friday. No snark, and it's hard to even muster outrage. There was a great thread on Daily Kos on the events of that day, and since that point we've learned that the name of the brave deceased worker is Jdimytai Damour.

It's been a week, and I still don't know what to say, but Meghan Scott of Wake-Up Wal-Mart has issued the following statement:  

"While this is not the time for pointing fingers, it is critical that we examine what caused this tragedy, and how we prevent more families from suffering such a loss. It appears that Mr. Damour's senseless death resulted from Wal-Mart's negligence and need for huge sales on Black Friday.

"The retail giant had a responsibility to ensure its workers were safe, but instead, Wal-Mart once again placed profit ahead of people. This is an incredibly sad and extreme example of Wal-Mart's ongoing mistreatment of the people who work in the stores. From poverty-level wages to healthcare that is priced out of reach, to 1.6 million women forced to sue for equal pay, America's largest private employer continues to fail its workers at the holidays and throughout the year. Wal-Mart's low prices should not come at such a high cost to the people who work in the stores. Last Friday, Mr. Damour paid the ultimate price."

What's going on in America?

Please share your thoughts in the comment thread.

(Cross-posted on Daily Kos and MyDD)