I recently wrote about a Menlo Park Neighborhood Association meeting I attended a couple of weeks ago, where Menlo residents and Rio Nuevo Board representatives discussed mining equipment manufacturer Caterpillar’s regional headquarter’s upcoming move to West Side Tucson.
Much of the city is celebrating the fact that Caterpillar chose the Old Pueblo over others like Phoenix and Denver to bring what could mean $600 million in economic impact and 600 well-paying jobs—many of which will already be taken by existing Caterpillar employees, who will begin relocating to Tucson this summer.
My focus of the article revolved around a handful of residents who are concerned about what this will mean to the historic Menlo Park: everything from hikes in property tax and rent costs that will push old-time residents out to environmental and gentrification concerns. (Is this part of the trend to kill as much of Tucson’s Native American and Mexican American cultural heritage as possible?)
Abby Okrent with the Jewish Voice for Peace-Tucson pointed out another huge issue of much global scale regarding Caterpillar and whether or not a city like Tucson should be rejoicing over their move here: there is a global campaign against Caterpillar for “its complicity in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.”
The company sells its bulldozers to Israel through the U.S. government Foreign Ministry. A 2007 post by the Center for Constitutional Rights says, “Since its occupation of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem following the 1967 war, the Israel Defense Force (IDF) has destroyed more than 18,000 Palestinian homes in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). Meanwhile, Caterpillar, Inc., a U.S. company, has sold bulldozers to the IDF knowing they would be used to unlawfully demolish homes and put civilians in danger.” (There is a lot of information about human rights concerns just an Internet search away.)
It is important to get all layers of this situation. Not all is a celebration when it comes to Caterpillar. There are voices stepping up, asking questions, despite several suggestions to keep opinions at a minimum over fear that Caterpillar will feel “unwelcomed.”
Okrent sent the Weekly the following editor’s note:
Caterpillar sells specialized bulldozers that Israel weaponizes and uses to further the Occupation and expand settlements. Israel’s Occupation depends on the destruction of Palestinian homes and infrastructure, and the construction of illegal settlements, checkpoints, walls, and segregated roads. An armored Caterpillar D9 or D10 bulldozer can destroy a home within minutes, and sometimes with not much more warning to its inhabitants.
In 2003, when a Caterpillar bulldozer crushed 23-year old American peace activist Rachel Corrie, the U.S. campaign against Caterpillar’s bulldozer sales to Israel took off. Initially led by the Sisters of Loreto, whose Catholic order held stock in Caterpillar, it has since expanded greatly. Many U.S. churches, including the Presbyterian Church-USA, United Church of Christ, Unitarian Universalists, Mennonite Central Committee, and Quaker Friends Fiduciary Corporation, have divested from Caterpillar. Retirement company TIAA-CREF divested from Caterpillar, and Caterpillar was removed from the MSCI’s socially responsible company index in 2012. A number of colleges and universities have also voted to divest from Caterpillar.
Caterpillar has steadfastly rejected shareholder resolutions and outside calls for accountability. There is no reason that a company that does such a brisk business in civilian equipment needs to make and sell what are essentially military machines, although we fear that this is also what will be happening along our own border. Between the city’s security contract with private prison company G4S and this new deal with Caterpillar, we are concerned that Tucson’s business decisions do not reflect our values a a city.
This article appears in Jun 16-22, 2016.
Well I can think of one person who won’t be working for Caterpillar!
The Palestinian Authority also buys and uses Caterpillar equipment within the West Bank and Hamas does the same thing in Gaza. If they could figure out a way to use these things to kill Israeli civilians they probably would, but for now they are using them to rebuild the homes of terrorists that the Israelis knock down. Why are both sides using Caterpillar? Because it is a tool! This is a tool and equipment maker. We aren’t talking about a bomb maker moving to Tucson or anything like that, oh wait they are already here….
In light of what happened in Orlando is also bears mentioning that homosexuals are brutally persecuted by the cultural norms within the Palestinian Authority and Hamas. They are beaten and killed, their families are publicly shamed and they are prevented from participating in society on any meaningful level. Israel is the only open, free society in the middle east where homosexuals can live out and open lives without fear.
There are no good guys and no bad guys in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Simply a lot of flawed human beings making emotional decisions based on fear, limited resources, religion and more fear. We should not let this get in the way of economic progress here in Tucson where an equipment manufacturer wants to bring high paying, good jobs. Something we have not gotten in a long, long time. Maybe you would prefer another call center?
Quotes from “Jewish Voices for Peace”????
“Jewish Voices for Peace” = Not Jewish, Can’t use a Nice Voice, Against Peace
Not Jewish (most of its members aren’t; most Jews hate them.)
Can’t use “a reasonable voice” – (Lies such as Israel destroys houses without warning. Fact – Israel destroys the homes of terrorists. Mean, but not illegal.)
For Peace – no – (they’re allied with groups that openly advocate the destruction of the Jewish State and genocide against Jews.)
wow how long have you been waiting for something to happen to go on your anti-jewish rant? Or did you really screw up and make the argument that the Jewish settelments are no diffrent then a company expanding their presence in a city and the locals bitching the rent is now too damn high
Another reason to be glad Caterpillar is here.
Thank you Maria for writing this article. The comments here (thus far) are grossly ignorant about the facts that surround this issue. Israel is clearly in the wrong with regards to their treatment of the Palestinians. Anyone who has taken the time to read about or seriously look into this topic would know that. Unfortunately, American media outlets from FOX to NPR – regardless of “left” or “right” – outrageously skew this issue and have for many, many years. Please continue to cover this topic in a fair and balanced way, and disregard the rants of those who feel we should give billions of dollars to the war criminals who would gladly place sniper bullets into the heads of children who have grown up watching their meager homes bulldozed.
I would like to add my voice to the few commentators here who have complimented this reporter for covering this issue.
There are certainly good economic reasons to support this business coming to Tucson, but there are also serious moral objections to Caterpillar and the issue of illegal settlements and the destruction of Palestinian homes. Rachel Corrie was not a terrorist, nor are the many innocent families who have seen their homes destroyed because a family member may have been suspected of being a terrorist. Of course, Donald Trump has also advocated the killing of relatives of suspected terrorists as well, so it should not be a surprise to see his ideological bedfellows here advocate the same in the above comments.
As for the commentator that asserts that Jewish Voices For Peace has no Jewish members, please site your sources. Although it is not generally recognised here in the U.S.A., there are many Jews and Isreali’s who understand and work for peace as a way to help secure the state of Israel for the future.
Again, thank you for raising this important issue.
Caterpillar fits right in here with Raytheon and DM. Tucson is more of an accomplice to empire than it wants to admit.