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To ASBC SVC Update:
Barclays Withdrawal from Prison Financing Deal | |
Dear John, We recently experienced a significant development at ASBC-SVC and want to share the news of how we represent our shared values in action. On Thursday, April 15 the American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC) and Social Venture Circle (SVC) announced the termination of the membership and refunding of dues to Barclays based on its involvement in a prison financing deal in Alabama. Abstention from financing was pre-condition to their membership. We contacted journalists who cover Barclays and topics related to the issue and conducted interviews and shared our perspective, which resulted in high-profile media coverage (links below) and the backing down of Barclays. Business leaders and investors quickly rallied in their support encouraging Barclays to pull out of the deal and a group of impact investors, business leaders, coordinated by Christina Hollenback (Founder & Principal, Justice Capital), and social justice advocates called on global investors to refuse to purchase the $630 million taxable municipal bond offering by the Alabama Department of Corrections through the Wisconsin Public Finance Authority. Barclays, which led the financing, then announced it was pulling out of the deal. ASBC released a statement in support of the Barclays decision, including many comments of support from members and coalition partners. We again contacted media to inform them of the development and our support. In addition to the significance of Barclays exiting the prison financing deal, this is also a moment in time to pause to recognize how the staff of ASBC-SVC quickly and decisively put our values into action and the major media attention these developments warranted, the level of which we have not experienced in recent years. Below are links to a few of the news stories for your information and tweets we initiated. It is our honor to be of service to our members and stand up for the values we share. | |
