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Welcome to the website for the
California Right To Know
Genetically Engineered Food Labeling
Ballot Initiative
WHAT IS CALIFORNIA RIGHT TO KNOW_
California Right to Know is a grassroots campaign calling for the
labeling of genetically modified foods in the state of California. We believe
people have a fundamental right to know what is in the food they are buying and
consuming. A variety of personal, ethical, and environmental considerations
make this information necessary, and apparently the American public agrees --
polls show overwhelming support for the labeling of genetically modified foods.
The only, and embarrassingly weak, argument for withholding this information is
that it might confuse or "frighten" consumers. As you research this issue
further, you will likely find reason enough to be frightened by the ongoing
genetic manipulation of the food supply, and appalled that this information is
currently withheld from the American public. Please explore our website for
links and information. We hope you will find reasons to support this
citizens’ campaign.
SO FAR…a very brief history
In October, 1999, Sonoma County organic farmer and teacher Robert
Cannard filed a proposed ballot initiative with the Attorney General’s
office and the California Secretary of State. His original proposed law was 106
words long, written in plain English.
Not all states have the ballot initiative as a democratic tool,
but fortunately, here in California, we do; an individual may file a proposed
ballot initiative after collecting a number of pre-qualifying signatures and
paying a fee. (For details on the California ballot initiative process, browse
this website.) An initiative’s proponent has 150 days to collect the
necessary signatures to qualify the initiative for the ballot. In California,
the number of signatures is based on a formula tied to the number of votes cast
in the last gubernatorial election – the magic number we needed to qualify
for the November 2000 ballot was 419,260.
At the time, we had hoped that this could be accomplished with an
all-volunteer effort, drawing on the enormous public support for labeling, and
using a networking approach supported by the Internet. We are just ordinary
folks trying to work and run a farm, and accepting donations would have
required forming a recipient committee, more paperwork, etc. Instead, we
envisioned a network of political action in which individuals made their own
copies of the initiative, collected signatures from their own families,
friends, neighbors and coworkers, and organized their own tabling efforts in
each county.
We were warned this was unrealistic, but we dreamed it was
possible to conduct politics this way. However, despite enthusiastic support
from everyone who heard about it, not enough people heard about it in time. We
gathered over 100,000 signatures (they are still coming in), with the help of
many people who worked extremely hard to achieve this. We learned just how
difficult it is to collect such a huge number of signatures in such a short
time using an all-volunteer approach.
In the meantime, federal and state legislation was introduced to
require labeling, in the form of three bills:
- State Senator Tom Hayden’s Assembly bill # SB1513.
- House Bill H.R. 3377, introduced by Rep. Dennis Kucinich
(Ohio), co-sponsored by California Congresswoman Lynne Woolsey and others.
- Senate Bill S. 2080, introduced by California Senator Barbara
Boxer.
Contact these representatives about
the current status of these bills, and to voice your support. At present, there
has been no action on any of these bills, other than referrals to committees.
Our feeling is that since we can’t necessarily count on a worthy bill
actually getting out of committee, let alone passing, citizens in states which
have the ballot initiative should pursue that option. Folks in Maine, Colorado,
and Oregon are now working on initiative campaigns.
THE DECISION TO RE-FILE: how you can
help
In considering the next step, we recognize that we need to gather
the necessary human energy in advance in order to make a second effort
worthwhile. To this end, we are presently collecting:
1. Your Input
Please call or send us your input ASAP on the wording of the
proposed law – changes, suggestions, etc. Read the text of the original
proposed initiative on this website, along with the appended considerations we
are currently brainstorming. Let us know what you think.
We are biased in favor of plain English.
2. "Units" of energy in the form of:
A. Pledge units
We need pledges of
support from individuals and organizations:
- signature-gathering pledges: the idea is much like a walkathon;
we will be posting our progress on this site as we collect pledges, with name,
county, & how many signatures you are pledging to gather.
- We need organizations to "adopt" this campaign, focusing on
signature-gathering during the 150-day window. We will also post
organizations’ pledges on this site.
In addition, we will need:
- volunteer coordinators in each California
county
- website links to spread the word
- publicity help throughout the
state
B. Money units
Because the window of time to collect signatures is so short, we
will most likely need to supplement volunteer energy with paid signature
gatherers. You can send contributions, made out to "California Right to Know"
to (In case you have a concern about what
your contribution will fund, please know that we are prevented by law from
spending those funds on anything other than efforts to pass this initiative.)
One signature or one
dollar = one "unit". Our goal is to collect one million "units", which should
make our goal achievable this time around. We will post our progress on this
site as we proceed.
Is the time ripe for qualifying this initiative in California, and
then for campaigning and passing it_ Let’s get going! Please let us hear
from you.
Yours for a future worth inheriting,
California Right to
Know
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