The Baby Boomer Renaissance: The Boomer Chronicles

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

The Boomer Chronicles

Wal-Mart Coming to Boston? Not If I Can Help It

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:13 AM PST

Every day, another community has to fight off mega-corporation Wal-Mart. Now the retailer has set its sights on Boston, where I live. For years, I’ve added my voice to the protests of Wal-Mart and other similar big-box retailers. Here’s why:

They kill small, independent businesses and change the character of the areas they enter
They make a profit at the expense of their employees’ health and ability to earn a decent wage
They use sweatshop labor overseas
If Wal-Mart locations do not work out, they leave behind a big box, a parking lot, unemployed people, and ghost towns where all the competing stores closed down long ago

Here are some places to look for information on fighting Wal-Mart:

The Institute for Local Self-Reliance is a group fighting big-box stories, and promoting “buying local.”

Here’s a tool kit for fighting Big Box sprawl.

Check out Sprawl Busters.