Inspired by Faith, Committed to Action: The History of Shareholder Advocacy BY JUDY BYRON, OP
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hareholder advocacy as we know it today began in the mid-20th century, shortly after the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964. Paul Neuhauser, a lawyer and member of the Episcopal Church Committee on Social Justice, was motivated by the U.S. civil rights movement to work for civil rights abroad—in this case, to end apartheid, South Africa’s system of institutionalized racism. At the time, the Episcopal Church held shares in General Motors, an international company that sold cars in South Africa. In 1971, Neuhauser drafted and filed a shareholder resolution on behalf of the Episcopal Church and a few Protestant denominations, requesting General Motors stop doing business in South Africa. Thus began a multi-year campaign that resulted in more than 200 companies withdrawing from South Africa, significantly damaging the country’s economy. Archbishop Desmond Tutu cites this work, led by religious shareholders, as one reason the walls of oppression came down and free elections were held in South Africa in 1994.
Founding the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR)
Faith-based investors discovered that they could use shareholder proposals to change corporate behavior to build a just and equitable society. Inspired by their victory, a small group of Protestant churches founded the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) in 1971; they were soon joined by Catholic religious communities of women and men. ICCR members, “inspired by faith, committed to action,” pioneered shareholder advocacy as a tool for social change, and as Neuhauser has said, have always been ahead of the curve on social justice. In the early 1980s, when ICCR members realized that corporate change through shareholder advocacy took time and people need instant relief and access, they founded the Clearinghouse on Alternative Investment, a way to use
1980s Citibank anti apartheid protest, Tim Smith, Donna Katzin, Jesse Jackson
Campaign involving 70 companies seeks health care reform. Affordable Care Act passed in 2010.
Resolution at Hormel raises the issue of “superbugs” and antibiotic use in animal agriculture.
1998
2003
Procter&Gamble CEO agrees to discuss the environmental and health impacts of bleaching pulp and paper with chlorine.
ICCR Interfaith Prayer Service for South Africa, Photos courtesy of ICCR
2005
2006-10
Ford acknowledges the risks of climate change and publishes first report on climate risk.
2008
Affordable Care Act
2010
Best Buy, the largest U.S. electronics retailer, phases out PVC packaging.
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