Replies will be included, if possible.
From an Artspace non-SAIL user member:
Sir:Reply:
It has come to my attention that Fat Franks is providing hot dogs for this event.
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"Join SAIL staff and their supporters at the SAIL picket line July 1 for an afternoon of solidarity and free Fat Franks hot dogs! See you there!"
I am writing to inform you that I am a member of the Artspace Co-op, where this event is being planned. "All" are most certainly not welcome!
Artspace is a private, membership owned complex of 88 units, including a high rise and townhouses, which are the homes of about 180 people. A number of these individuals are physically disabled, requiring the assistance of home care workers, who are currently on strike through AUPE.
Since May 7, 2014, AUPE strikers have held our members under siege. It has been 7 weeks of abuse, harassment and intimidation. AUPE members have heaped verbal abuse on our members, threatened a number of us, targeted others for extra abuse and more, including racist, ablist and sexist comments shouted at individuals (including myself). They have disrupted our lives with shouting, sometimes through megaphones, air raid sirens, loud music and fake police sirens. Some AUPE members have stalked our members, off site as well as online, including our children, and even gone so far as to try and video some of our children against parental request to stop, then physically assaulting those members who tried to stop them from filming the children, approaching children as young as 5 years old with union fliers, and lured them with ice cream.
Their actions have traumatised our members, and there has been police involvement in a number of incidents. We have had to hire a security company to prevent things from escalating even worse.
I am asking Fat Fanks to withdraw from this event, as doing so is supporting the abusive behaviour of AUPE against some of our most vulnerable community members.Until I hear that Fat Fanks is withdrawing their support of AUPE abuse through this event, I am asking everyone I know to boycott Fat Franks.Thank you for your time and attention.
Response:
Yes we are hired and paid to be there.It is not our position to judge events nor take sides in public opinions of them.Thank you for your comments
Until then, I will continue to ask my friends and neighbours to boycott Fat Franks.AUPE has advertised the address of our HOME as the location of this event. We have not been asked for, nor do we give, permission for this event. Investigations are being made with the police about the legality of this event.This appears to be a contradiction from what one of my neighbours had been told on the phone, which is that Fat Franks does NOT have a kiosk booked.
If Fat Franks does indeed have a kiosk booked for this event, I once again respectfully request that it be withdrawn.
Thank you.
Reply 2:
Response 2:Sorry to hear your decision, however I respect the right of ALL persons to express theirs.AS a business, we do not nor cannot make decisions based on public opinion of issues. If we started to do that the line gets very murky indeed. Do we not support Native Rights issues, women's issues, homelessness issues, anti – gay issues – because one side of the argument wishes us not to do them?WE do support E4C School lunch program with a percentage of sales from ALL events – to date $4000.00 – so action of such boycotts serve no point but personal ethics – again with all due respect!Regards
As a business, I understand that you would not investigate potential clients before taking them on, so you would not know if there are issues. Now, however, you have been informed.Updated: Reply 3:
This is not a matter of public opinion. This is a matter of AUPE scheduling an event at our private home, without our consent, as a continuation of weeks of abuse against our members, many of whom are disabled. They have, in fact, specifically targeted a number of our disabled members. This is a matter of documented incidents of harassment and intimidation by AUPE, including racist, sexist and able-ist attacks, physical assault and threats of physical violence.
E4C happens to be our neighbour. Thanks to AUPE picketers, they have lost any street parking on 94th St that had been available to them until now. Do you think they are not affected by hour after hour of people shouting on megaphones or using air raid sirens? Many of our members walk their dogs on E4C grounds, where AUPE members have stalked some of them, taking video, and making threats. Are disabled people not on your list of groups you support? Or does Fat Franks support AUPE's harassment of people in wheelchairs and walkers, at their own homes?
Now that Fat Franks has been informed as to the circumstances, by continuing to provide product for this even, Fat Franks is tacitly supporting the continued abuse of the Artspace community and some of our most vulnerable members.
You are right. This is a matter of ethics. And it seems to me that Fat Franks is choosing money over ethics by supporting AUPE abusers as they host and promote an event at our private homes, against our consent.
Thank you for your comments.Fat Franks does indeed support handicapped people – a fact you do not know is that I have very dear friend severely handicapped and lovingly looked after by myself and other friends, so I do not appreciate comments based on ignorance. That is the vitriol of persons who do not look at the whole bigger picture – there is no black and white!You have made your point and I have accepted the fact that Fat Franks cannot win in this situation – we either piss you guys off or AUPE ( who we do business with at other events as well ). Either way – we loose.WE are not making ANY chooses but to continue working to support 20 employees, their families and perhaps their incapacitated relations.With all due respect – I wish you well in your issues with AUPE. It is not our issue!
Regards
From a commenter at Blazing Cat Fur (thanks for the plug, BCF!)
From a supporter:
I emailed this to Fat Franks today. I'm also posting this on their Facebook page.: Hi Lorne: I am writing to you as a sister of a resident of Art Space. I am a big Fat Franks fan. I enjoy your hot dogs outside of Canadian Tire,at festivals and at private functions. I realize that you are hired to cater events and it is reasonable to believe that it is not your responsibility to vet the morality of the event or the people or the organisation that hires you.
I also realize that Fat Franks likely caters to many events for various union events in Alberta including events sponsored by AUPE and that it not your place to have to research and take sides on the issues between AUPE and SAIL. What I would ask you and your employees to do is have respect for the residents of Art Space, particularly those who are disadvantaged.
As you might not be aware, Art Space is an inclusive community that welcomes disabled residents, seniors and families with children. Please respect that where you have been asked to cater this event is their home. While this strike has been going on, members of AUPE have harassed residents of Art Space who are not involved in the dispute with AUPE. This harassment includes interfering with their quiet enjoyment of their property. The behaviour of AUPE is likely actionable civilly in the tort
of nuisance. I would hate for Fat Franks to unwittingly be drawn into a lawsuit because they and their employees are seen to be part of the “nuisance”. Please know that, in my opinion, Fat Franks is not catering a “celebration event” even if it is labelled as such (a “Canada Day Party”) as they are usually are hired to do. It is my opinion that Fat Franks is a pawn in a plan by AUPE designed plan to cause maximum disruption and disturbance to the innocent residents of Art Space, some of whom are society’s most disadvantaged members and some who are either “ready to crack” or have actually had breakdowns caused by the constant
bullying and harassment at their home caused by the members of AUPE who are engaging in this behaviour. My brother has PTSD and was targeted and incessantly bullied and harassed by AUPE members (even when asked to stop and advised that he had PTSD) to the degree that he had a breakdown and was driven from his home. I would ask that you please alert the employees you have working this “event” to the fragile condition of many of the residents of Art Space and to please show them the common courtesy, respect and dignity that all members of any right thinking society should be accorded and ask that you ask your employees to not engage in same the bullying and harassment of residents of Art Space that the AUPE members have.
Thank you.
A reply recieved by an Artspace SAIL user member:
Yes. Here's a copy of the reply I received today. I didn't ask them to not support the AUPE, just their abusive bullying behavior. On Jun 28, 2014, at 1:05 PM, "Lorne Merrick" <lornemerrick@fatfranks.ca> wrote:From a friend of an Artspace member:
Thank you for your opinions. It is indeed the right of a secular democracy to speak ones mind. Fat Franks is a business that gets HIRED to be at a multitude of events. WE are not and cannot be in the business of deciding the side of public opinion on issues. That is a murky path indeed. Do we decide to not do events for Native rights, women's rights, gay rights – all that we have been to - because their is another side of the discussion? Fat Franks donates a portion of proceeds from ALL events to E4C School Lunch program – to date $4000.00 – so a boycott does nothing but enforce a personal opinion – with all due respects. Regards Lorne H. Merrick fatfranks.ca dialanddine.ca
Dear Fat Franks,
I was very concerned today to discover that you are supporting the AUPE by participating in a Canada Day BBQ at the home of the Artspace members. The people who live there are already dealing with the day to day abusive behaviour from the AUPE, and now without even so much as asking permission, the AUPE want to hold a celebratory event with music, dancing and free Fat Franks hot dogs. They are actually publicising the address of the co-op members home! It is so disrespectful and not what I expect from Fat Franks.
I urge you to withdraw your support for this event. I will be boycotting Fat Franks until you do, and will be encouraging all my friends and family to do so as well.
Please do the right thing and restore my faith in your company.
Respectfully,
_________________________________________________________________
I have been really disappointed in Fat Franks responses so far (there are others I am not able to post yet). We know that they're just doing business, and would have no way of knowing that AUPE was using them the way they are - and make no mistake; they are being used as pawns by AUPE, just like we Artspace members, and our striking SAIL staff, are also being used by them. It's the dishonesty of their responses that get me. At this point, we don't even know if they will actually be there, cooking hot dogs, or if AUPE rented one of their carts and is going to do the BBQ'ing themselves, as they have given contradictory statements.
There were really two responses (in some variation) that would have made sense.
They could have said, "Hey, we didn't know this was going to be at someone's private home without their permission. Thanks for telling us, We'll bow out so as not be dragged into the middle of this."
Or they could have said, "Thanks for telling us this. We didn't know. However, we have signed a contract and legally can't back out of it. "
Either way, they could have taken an ethical stand against the abuse of Artspace members; particularly those with disabilities and/or health issues.
Instead, they threw up a straw man to try and take some sort of fake high road and make excuses, without even addressing the actual issue at hand: AUPE is holding a party at our private homes.
All we are asking is for them to withdraw from a single event, planned by AUPE, at an advertised location that is our HOME. Our private space. That AUPE has been abusing us for almost 2 months should have just made the decision that much easier.
That alone is enough for me to never buy from Fat Franks again. Which is a shame, because normally I'd want to support franchisees.
Note: people have informed me that they have tried to leave comments objecting to this event on the AUPE facebook page, only to have them immediately removed.
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