by Melissa Diane Smith, author of Going Against GMOs

It’s the festive holiday season—no better time to recreate non-GMO Pure Food Dinners in Tucson!

I am pleased to say that I planned the first non-GMO Pure Food Dinner in the summer of 2012, and every single one of the dinners that I helped organize and that our group offered was extremely popular.

Fast forward to today: In less than two months, the Tucson community has done an amazing job of standing up against Monsanto in Pima County, and new people are joining the movement every day! So, I thought teaming up with GMO Free Arizona and offering a few non-GMO dinners during the holidays was a perfect way to thank the people of Pima County for all their efforts so far and to keep the movement going strong.

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The weather has become chilly, making it the perfect time to grab a quick organic coffee or a leisurely coffee with interactive conversation and sharing of information with other citizens who are concerned about Monsanto’s proposed plans in our community.

This Organic Coffee & Conversation event will take place at San Giorgi’s Coffee, 6435 N. Thornydale Road, this Saturday, December 3, between 1 and 3 p.m. San Giorgi’s is an independent family owned coffee shop in northwest Tucson that not only offers organic and fair trade coffee and tea but also organic milk, coconut milk, or almond milk to add to your drinks.

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The Community Pushes Pima County to Delay a Vote on Monsanto Tax Incentives; What’s Coming Next?

by Melissa Diane Smith, author of Going Against GMOs

Headline and photo from the November 23 online version of the Arizona Daily Star

The people of Pima County emphatically told the Pima County Board of Supervisors at its board meeting on November 22 that they do not want multinational chemical corporation Monsanto in the Tucson area. A few hundred people attended the meeting, and many held yellow signs that read “Say NO to Monsanto.” There were more than three hours of statements from more than 50 speakers, and virtually everyone who spoke opposed Monsanto’s plans to build a facility in Avra Valley. The eclectic tidal wave of opposition persuaded the board to delay its vote on a tax incentive for Monsanto.

For more coverage of this story, see the Arizona Daily Star article, “Pima County Delays vote on Monsanto Tax Incentives,” and the KGUN 9 news segment, “Outcry Leads Pima Supervisors to Delay Monsanto Decision.”

Grassroots Power

At the meeting, a few children spoke out against the corporation. One woman described Monsanto as a Trojan horse, trying to give gifts now so Pima County would bring in the corporation and then Monsanto would destroy our community from within. Ida Drucilla “Dru” Heaton wore a lei in honor of her Hawaiian heritage and what the Hawaiian people have experienced at the hands of Monsanto.

The collective arguments against Monsanto melded beautifully together and pushed the board away from greenlighting a tax break for Monsanto. Instead, the board unanimously agreed to delay the vote until its meeting on February 21, 2017. The board also agreed that five open public meetings—one in each district—will take place about Monsanto and its proposed plans before that date.

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Planning on going to the Pima County Board of Supervisors meeting at 130 W. Congress Avenue at 9 a.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, November 22^nd, to tell the board in no uncertain terms that to vote NO on the proposal to give Monsanto a tax break? We’re counting on you! Please join us as we fight against this outrageous idea!

Here are some things you should know:

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by Melissa Diane Smith

In a guest opinion piece in the November 15^th Ârizona Daily Star, Supervisor Richard Elias outlined a long list of reasons why the Board of Supervisors should not support a tax break for Monsanto.

“Monsanto has a decades-long litany of producing, promoting, and distributing some of the deadliest toxins ever created—and shirking responsibility for the tragic consequences of their use,” Elias wrote.

The company and its predecessors have had a hand in, often been a creator of, many of the world’s worst toxic nightmares: PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), early nuclear weaponry, DDT, dioxin, Agent Orange, Roundup (glyphosate), Lasso (alachlor), Bovine Growth Hormone, and genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Elias described the toxicity of—in other words, the environmental and health harm brought by—each one of these products.

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Below is a letter that Dr. DeeAnn Saber wrote to John Moffat of Pima County Economic Development regarding Monsanto’s purchase of land in Pima County and its proposed plans to build a facility here. She wanted the letter to be shared with the public.

Dear Mr. Moffat,

I have attempted to call numerous times but apparently no one is willing or able to answer your phones. I am writing therefore in regards to the decision the Board has made to let Monsanto into our area.

They were just on trial at The Hague, an internationally recognized institution, for crimes against humanity due to the poisonous nature of their products.

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Upset about chemical corporation Monsanto’s plans to build a facility in Pima County and wondering what you can do about it? Be sure to attend the Stand Up Against Monsanto community meeting at the Oro Valley Public Library, 1305 W. Naranja Drive, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, November 19, 2016. See the Facebook event page.

In the meeting, you’ll:

• Watch a 30-minute video about what happened in Hawaii
• Discover what we can learn from their experience
• Hear comments from Going Against GMOs author Melissa Diane Smith, farmer Anne Loftfield of High Energy Agriculture, and beekeeper David Benton
• Meet like-minded people who want to band together to oppose Monsanto’s efforts
• Get information about the Pima County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, November 22^nd, at 9 a.m.; why it’s so important to have a large community turnout there; and what to expect at the meeting.

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