To publish content you need to register for a free account or login.

/ Homepage / Idle Chat /

Residents fight Coca-Colonisation

Press Release - For Immediate Release

Residents fight Coca-Colonisation [or "in battle with Multinational Chains"]

A Starbucks cafe shatters the atmosphere of Cambridge's historic market.
McDonald's golden arches rise alongside the towers of Cambridge's lofty
colleges. But one neighbourhood is fighting back. Following the
invasion of a Pizza Hut and Subway into the Mill Road area, local
residents have vowed to drive the chain stores out. Calling the
invasion of multinational chains "McDomination", and "Disneyfication",
they have begun a long battle over the changing character of their
neighbourhood.

This Saturday they will be taking their fight to a new level: they will
be standing outside the Mill Road Pizza Hut and Subway from 11:15 a.m.
onwards giving out free food to passers-by and encouraging them to sign
their open letter and petition to the city council, which urges
councillors to do "everything in their power to preserve the character
of Mill Road by excluding chain stores".

While the city centre becomes indistinguishable from any other town,
Mill Road has struggled to maintain it's well deserved reputation as an
area with a thriving and diverse community, served by a wide array of
interesting, independent local businesses. However, this diversity has
been put under threat the simultaneous arrival of the second and third
multinational fast-food outlets in the area. Local people are concerned
that as the likes of Pizza Hut and Chicken Cottage arrive,
existing local businesses and community organisations will be squeezed
out, and their neighbourhood will be turned into a shopping mall.

Local resident Edward Rockingham said, "I love living on Mill Road
precisely because of its unique character and atmosphere. A huge part
of that character is down to the fact that we have, so far, escaped the
fate of so many towns, and some areas of Cambridge; the take-over by
multinational chains like McDonald's, Pizza Hut and Subway. These
businesses are not rooted in the local community, don't provide
decent sustainable employment, and hugely detract from the character of
our city. They are not welcome here".

Residents argue that chain stores threaten this distinctive and unique
neighbourhood at a time when, all over the world, corporate uniformity
is creating identikit towns and cities. Living in an area with a sense
of community and identity enhances everyone's quality of life. The "No
Chains Campaign", set up in response to the chain store invasion, feels
that it's extremely important to preserve the diversity of Mill Road, by
creating a chain store free zone.

Notes for the Editor:

1. The residents will be giving away food outside Subway and Pizza Hut,
both on Mill Road between the Parker's Piece and the railroad tracks.
They will be there from 11:15 a.m. on May 6th.

2. "No Chains" was set up by residents living in the Mill Road area in
late 2005 and campaigns to stop the encroachment of characterless
multinational chains on the city. They are part of the Cambridge Action
Network http://www.cambridgeaction.net

3. Local business people have been very supportive of the campaign and
many have displayed leaflets in their Mill Road premises.

4. For further information, or to arrange an interview, please e-mail
cambridge@lists.riseup.net

Published by andyt at 12:00pm on Sat 6th May 2006. Viewed 4,718 times.

Deleted Post

Published by Green Mind (not active) at 12:47pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

Deleted Post

Published by d-wayne-love (not active) at 3:12pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

its a bit of a tough cookie to convert people from chainstore food habits when they eat there because of the price (and dont mind/like the taste). if you need a different reason to protest against these places, theres enough generally unethical business practises to keep you going for a long time, and though i'm no expert on the outlets-in-question, i'd be happy to be seen protesting against their staff union and wage policies (presuming they arne't above the average), if nothing else.

You dont even need to get near the whole issue of them muscling the independent takeaways /restaurants out of what is currently considered a very pleasantly diverse area for food. However, whilst the two target markets that Pizza Hut and Al Casbah or Bruno's occupy are obviously quite seperate, if you dont see the advantage of being able to keep this particular area of town free of the chain shops that will inevitably take a portion of the latter's business, then you probably aren't making the most of them!

its kind of like a decent curry mile being overthrown by, well, a PIzza Hut. next time you're craving for a decent Maggot Bhuna edit: (boosh quote, sorry) , you'll wish you'd been out there!

Published by gramsci at 3:43pm on Sat 6th May 2006.
This reply has been edited, last edit at 3:44pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

smalleyeball

Mill Road needs this kind of action (he says from an armchair activism p.o.v.) because it is the only proper street in Cambridge.

What a great thing it would be if The Residents fought the Coca-Colonisation of Mill Road, though.

Published by strangelights at 5:07pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

My family dont know about my alternative life style

I wish Id know about this earlier . . . . Id have come along :)

I could have dressed up as the Boycott Bunny

Published by joosypigeon at 5:20pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

Erm,

people knew that pizza hut was gonna be built long before it was.

Why fight it now? why didn't people oppose the application long before the builders moved in...

to little to late.

go back to making cups of tea for the vicar.

Published by moody l at 5:52pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

Deleted Post

Published by The Chocoholic (not active) at 6:08pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

Deleted Post

Published by jedimia (not active) at 6:20pm on Sat 6th May 2006.

Deleted Post

Published by Anciclog (not active) at 9:52pm on Wed 30th August 2017.

Post a Reply

You either need to register for a free publisher account or login to post content on this website.