Today is World Consumer Rights Day.
Started in 1983, the day was inspired by an address that President John F. Kennedy gave in August, 1962 — 60 years ago.
Many of Kennedy passages resonate more than ever today.
“The march of technology — affecting, for example, the foods we eat, the medicines we take and the many appliances we use in our homes — has increased the difficulties of the consumer along with his opportunities,” Kennedy said.
The government, he said, should protect the right to safety, to being informed, to choice and to being heard.
Kennedy’s message helped pave the way for activists like Ralph Nader and his push for auto safety, and well as many other consumer safety initiatives.
Upton Sinclair, whose 1906 novel, “The Jungle,” depicted the deplorable standards in the meatpacking industry, prompting legislative action, was also viewed as an early advocate for consumers.
As corporations have accumulated more power, the movement is now cast in the role of underdog. This is especially true with the Trump administration systematically abandoning consumer protections that it took years to achieve.
“There are a lot of powerful interests trying to tilt the scales against consumers,” the publisher of Consumer Reports wrote in 2012. “But there is one important asset that they don’t have and we do. That asset is people power.”
That is if the people will wake up and recognize what is happening.
Thanks New York Times!
In the above photo, President Kennedy in Pierre, S.D., in August, 1962, when he made the speech.
Photo by George Tames