1.  the Mayor of Newark has not yet admitted he made a mistake by partnering with Nestle, nor has he cancelled the Newark / Nestle partnership

2.  the petition is going strong: 1,090 signatures and hundreds of comments from more than 40 countries.  Please continue to sign and pass onto others. I still wonder where the men's signatures are?  (Kudos to those men who have signed). Don't any of you lovely Lactnetters have partners, brother's, fathers, male co-workers etc.? 
 http://www.change.org/petitions/mayor-cory-booker-newark-new-jersey-usa-stop-the-hypocritical-newarknestle-campaign-to-target-childhood-obesity?share_id=HDVyjOmNmk& 
or google: Health petition, Newark / Nestle if you have any difficulties.

3.  The US Breastfeeding Committee (USBC) has written directly to Mayor Booker and mobilized their 40 partners and 52 coalitions to take action that includes signing the petition and encouraging the Mayor to say NO to Nestle. Thanks to Marsha Walker, Chair of Advocacy Committee for USBC.

4.  Communication has been started to encourage the NICHQ (National Initiative for Children's Healthcare Quality) to join the campaign.  Have a look at their website. They have interesting programs, including "Best Fed Beginnings" and "Childhood Obesity".

5.The Chief of Nutrition at CDC (Center for Disease Control) and the Paediatric and Medical Director of Birth Place, have also been contacted.  Just because an organization or partners receive a letter or directive does not mean that it is acted on.  If any Lactnetters work / are involved with any of the organizations, I have listed, please encourage the administrators to get involved and involve their partners and staff. We can say NO to Nestle systematically trying to partner with our organizations health care workers that care about child health.

6.  WABA has notified their US partners to get involved

7.  We need to get a press release out to increase the pressure on the Mayor.  Maria has been trying to interest the media but no one looks at a press release from one person.  We are asking the USBC to do a press release and suggest that some of their partners and other organizations could do a joint press release which would give more clout.  Can any of you ask the USBC to so a press release or collaborate with other organizations to do a joint release.

8.  If any Lactnetters have contacts with media can you please let Maria or me know off line so we are ready to act once we have a release?

9.  Many of you belong to LLL.  I know their position was never to get involved with anything that they considered was "political" (Nestle always loved this about the LLL).  Is this still the case?  If so, can you please lobby them that we need their help?  Breastfeeding (unfortunately) IS political.  The LLL is very well known, respected and has lots of contacts.  We need their help to stop the Newark / Nestle partnership and in doing so, stop Nestle from reaching out to other cities, states, hospitals, medical schools, universities etc. with a wad of money and a "free" program.

10.  Stop Newark / Nestle started with Maria and me but we are growing.  Emails are coming in off line with offers of help. Keep your help and suggestions coming.  They help make us confident that together we can say NO to Nestle.

11. A very creative person, in California, is taking a proactive approach by providing information of what Nestle is up to.  She, "plans to present the question to our (her) Breastfeeding Coalition and ask them to invite several coalitions from around here to send a joint set of letters saying that these formula companies are trying to co-opt good people who may not realize that they are not dealing with honest and trustworthy benevolent donors!"   LOVE IT.  How many more of you can do the same?  If you contact me off line, I can put you in touch with the feisty woman in California.

12.  Enough for you to plough through for one day.  Nestle, we know you are lurking but we are not going to let you get away with sabotaging  the birth right of our babies.

13. Stay tuned ....

Renee (In Vancouver, Canada)

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