Soapbox
Fair Trade raises doubts about students' concerns

By Catherine Beddow

Mirror Guest Writer
December 7, 2007

I’m a skeptical person in general. I don’t like to take things at face value. I want to know where someone gets his or her information, how this information was obtained and what hard evidence goes behind authoritatively declared generalities.

Maybe that’s what caught my eye about a recent - and I’m assuming ongoing - campaign of the Augustana Coalition for Social Justice (ACSJ) to “make trade fair” and get Fair Trade coffee in the Huddle everyday.

The two statements that caught my eye were that most Augustana students want Fair Trade coffee and that the Huddle currently offers no Fair Trade options.

Standing at work reading these statements, I raised my eyebrows as I thought about their definitiveness.The second was immediately suspect, as the Huddle does indeed offer a Fair Trade certified option and most of the other blends are at least 35 percent Rainforest Alliance (RA) certified. RA is a certification system similar to Fair Trade, whereupon RA sets standards for sustainability in agriculture and forestry.

This is seen as less beneficial than Fair Trade because RA has no set minimum price for the crops sold. True, it is not a perfect system, but neither is Fair Trade certification. Even so, they are both ultimately working toward transforming the coffee industry into something that is good for the land and the workers.

The first statement was less problematic, but I have to wonder how many Augustana students really care about Fair Trade coffee. Yes, we voted Jesson Vogt and John Maisenbach as our ASA leaders, and yes, part of their platform was making the campus “greener.” That does not mean, however, that a vote for those two was a vote for Fair Trade coffee.

I’m not saying we should be proud of ourselves for our apathy, if that is the case. I’m just saying I would prefer that the Augustana community be accurately represented, for better or for worse, rather than have the loudest people assume they are speaking for all of us.

This brings me to the heart of a problem that has been nagging at me for a while now. It seems to be the trendy thing to care about the concerns and causes of the day, rather than to consistently and deeply have a personal cause to believe in.

I am skeptical of college activists in general because all of the hype, the unrealistic solutions and the apparent lack of research about the problems. It makes me wonder if people are in it so they can look like a good person, or if they really care about the cause. Fair Trade has always and may always be an issue, but it seems to be enjoying its time in the spotlight as campuses across the country get up in arms over the issue.

All I ask is that if we are all serious here, we cut the crap and work on actually solving the problem. Research the problems. Know that switching the coffee vendor in the Huddle is not as simple as wishing it to happen.

I could tell you without looking anything up that the Huddle does offer Fair Trade coffee, along with other coffees that still promote some good messages. Accusations and false statements are not going to solve this problem. This needs time, communication and patience on both sides. Then maybe we can work toward a reasonable solution.

To wrap this up in a neat package befitting the Christmas season soon upon us, I wish you all the joy that comes with discovering your true self in college. Find your cause and hold onto it; fight for it with all of your heart. Be passionate about what you believe and, most importantly, see where the journey takes you.