Dr. Richard posted this letter to the editor of the

The Spectator,
VSU’s student newspaper,

on SAVE’s facebook page today. I added the links and the images. -jsq

To the Editor:

I would like to address the VSU community with this letter.

VSU Students, faculty, and staff, did you know that many of the
clothes that we admire and purchase in the USA are made in places
like Bangladesh? Indeed, some of our most popular brands of

clothing, including GAP, Old Navy, and Banana Republic originate
there. Perhaps you know that many Bangladeshi clothing manufacturers
employ children as young as 12 years old who earn as little as $32
per month despite working up to 14 hours a day? It’s little wonder
that so many of us can look so stylish—and for relatively
little money.

If you didn’t already know this, does it matter to you now? Are you
concerned that the money you spend supports sweatshops in Bangladesh


and elsewhere, perpetuating the misery of millions of our fellow
human beings? Undoubtedly many of us are concerned, and we
understand that we can make a difference in the world by being more
judicious about where we shop. It’s why we choose to buy groceries
at worker-friendly Publix rather than the anti-union Walmart
Corporation. As ethical consumers become more aware of the need for
greater social responsibility in the marketplace—exemplified
by the Fair Trade movement—growing numbers producers are
responding our demands. The result is that positive changes are
taking place in numerous industries all over the world. You’ll
recall that

it was divestment that contributed to the end of the
racist Apartheid system in South Africa and to a decline in smoking
in the United States.

The same principles are at work right here on campus in S.A.V.E.’s
fossil fuel divestment campaign. For the greater good, namely to
stabilize the climate,

S.A.V.E. is urging our administration to
withdraw funds from corporations that produce and distribute
carbon-based fuels and to reinvest them elsewhere. Divesting from
oil and gas will encourage companies who specialize in producing
energy to bring cleaner fuels to the market. Only by demanding
corporate accountability and responsibility can we safeguard public
health and allow our fragile planet begin to heal itself. Without
this pressure, however, oil and gas companies have no incentive to
change.

Some will argue that VSU’s coal, oil, and gas investments yield good
returns, but I’d counter that

there are plenty of other options
promising solid returns these days. In fact, the last time I
checked, the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index was up 23% from a year
ago. So, the yield argument is a nonstarter. Moreover, if
administrators really believed what they preach about education,
they would see the fossil fuel problem holistically as members of
S.A.V.E. do. They’d understand that what the professors in
Geosciences are teaching their students is connected to what
professors in Philosophy and Religious Studies, and professors in
History, and Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice are
teaching their students; namely, that we live in a globally
interconnected world, and that failure to look beyond short-term
time horizons is irresponsible. Indeed, there seems no better way to
connect the disciplines—seen as an important issue in
education—than over this issue.

As an educator, I am extremely proud of

this group of student activists
who have taken to heart everything that they have learned
here at VSU. Let’s follow their lead.

Matthew Richard, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology,
Anthropology, and Criminal Justice

P.S. S.A.V.E. is circulating

a divestment petition that has already
garnered over 500 signatures. You can add your signature here:

http://campaigns.gofossilfree.org/petitions/divest-valdosta-state-from-fossil-fuels?source=facebook-share-button&time=1382485417.
S.A.V.E. is also showing a documentary film,

GASLAND II, this Thursday, Nov. 7, in Room 3009 of Bailey Science Center.