I was buying some scrapbook paper at a Michael's craft store last night, when I overheard an interesting conversation.
Woman #1: I think these are cheaper at Hobby Lobby.
Woman #2 [nods to man near her]: We don't shop there anymore, and this price is all right.
Woman #1: What's wrong with Hobby Lobby?
Man [moves nearer to woman #1]: They're anti-gay.
Woman #1: Oh. Good thing we have this place and JoAnn's [a craft and fabric store] then!
I was impressed to hear this.
I checked out their claims, and it's not just gays where Hobby Lobby has issues; apparently, they want to claim they have a right to deny health insurance coverage to women who want birth control as well.
Swell. Anti-gay and anti-women.
I'll never shop there either. My wallet will give my opinion of their hatred.
There are already a few other places I won't shop -- or won't shop anymore.
Chik-a-Fila. After their huge, free sandwich, gay-hating campaign, you couldn't drag me into one of their restaurants. Sick and wrong.
But if I'm straight, why do I care? I care because when people use religion as a cover for bigotry, I find it nauseating. And I'm not about to eat when I'm ready to barf.
Overstock.com. I used to shop at this website all the time -- until I found out that the owner donated a couple of million dollars to undermine public education in Utah and try to privatize it. Now I tell everyone I know to avoid the site.
Every time you make a purchase there, you help to fund the downfall of free, public education. Don't do it.
Jolley's Corner Pharmacy. This is a small pharmacy in Salt Lake, but the owner came out in the newspaper a few years ago, claiming (erroneously) that Plan B contraception was the same as an abortion. He refuses to sell it. I, therefore, remind people that this store is anti-women's rights, and I refuse to shop there.
Not that I've ever had a need for Plan B, mind you. It's the whole fact that this man thinks he has the right to restrict women's access to good health and to control over their own lives -- all based on a completely wrong assumption about a drug.
That's my list.
What about you? Where do you vote with your wallet? Do you buy local? Do you avoid companies that exploit children? Do you boycott homophobes or misogynists like I do? Where will you NOT shop/eat?
I'm trying to become educated about the issues you've talked about. the Plan B drug is one I haven't looked into much. Can you go into more detail about what the "wrong assumption" about the Plan B drug is? (That's the set of pills that terminate pregnancy within the first few weeks, right?)
ReplyDeleteAs for shopping, I don't worry too much about where I shop. Not to be too pessimistic, but it seems to me that a great deal of companies would have at least one practice that, if I knew about it, would be offensive or immoral, at least in my opinion. It would be difficult to find any shops to patronize in that case.
A lot of folks equate Plan B with an abortion. But, all it is is a set of hormones that will prevent a newly-fertilized egg from implanting -- if they're taken within the 1st 72 hours. The drugs have no affect on an already growing fetus, should the woman actually be pregnant BEFORE the drug is taken; they prevent a new pregnancy, rather than terminating an existing pregnancy.
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