Innovation + Responsibility

Last week, as most of the world knows by now, the Olympic torch made its one and only US stop here in my beloved San Francisco.  The week started off with an inspiring protest action on the Golden Gate Bridge - after the bold protests in London and Paris, you knew San Francisco was not going to relinquish its well-deserved title of the world's hotbed of progressive activism! That being said, the San Francisco of 2008 seems more like the place people come to strike it rich than the place they come to live a life of political activism (who can afford to be a full-time activist in SF these days, anyway?).  So I wondered what kind of mass protest the Bay Area would be able to pull off, and it was with great anticipation and enthusiasm that I headed down to the Embarcadero to watch it all go down.

Full disclosure: I was planning on attending the protest anyway. My synagogue is part of a coalition of faith-based and other organizations seeking to raise awareness and action about the genocide in Darfur.  I wouldn't be able to join for the marching part (it's CSR report season for me and I couldn't take the whole day off!), but wanted to show my support for the cause. 

There were thousands of people lined up along the waterfront - many waiting for the protesters, many waiting (in vain it turns out!) for the torch itself. I saw all manner of homemade signs and banners, a sea of Chinese as well as Tibetan flags, and clever t-shirts with handwritten slogans.  And then I saw it. Hovering over the crowd in all its glossy glory - my first ever corporate-sponsored, pre-printed protest sign! 

What better to signify the San Francisco of today - the corporate excess that has come to define the Bay Area lifestyle and the activism that has long defined our fine city combine to create the perfect message vehicle for a San Francisco rally! Consumerism to clear your conscience (with no nod to the irony that consumerism itself has played a large role in China's place in today's world, both as a rising economic power and a target for progressive activism).

Yes ladies and gentlemen - San Francisco's big Olympic torch protest was brought to you in part by Credo (formerly Working Assets).

 
Initially these signs cracked me up, not only because they were like caricatures of San Francisco protest signs - "Another acupuncturist for a free Tibet;" "Another organic chef for a Free Tibet;" "Another vegetarian for a free Tibet." - but also because they reminded me of the signs I see at marathons and triathlons (sports that engage a large portion of the Bay Area population, myself included) with big corporate logos along side, "Go _____!" with the athlete's name lovingly written in the blank. 

It was one of those "only in San Francisco" moments for me. And it got me thinking: Was Credo's "sponsorship" of the protest march an innovative use of corporate responsibility as a business development tool? Or was it something else?

Certainly Credo's activist point of view is authentic - the company was founded on the idea that as a communications company, it had a unique capacity to help its customers express their citizenship through different kinds of activism and civic engagement.  But I wondered if Credo's full-fledged support of this march (the company also pre-printed signs that said, "CHINA: Listen to the Dalai Lama") would alienate as many customers as it might attract.

Like most difficult social issues, the ones associated with China and the Olympics (and all related issues) are not black and white. By coming out so forcefully on the side of one particular set of protesters - and ignoring all the other arguably legitimate protests, including the Darfur protesters and environmental activists - was Credo effectively telling those of us with nuanced or even different perspectives that it didn't really care for our business? If so, it's certainly that company's prerogative to do so. And some might argue that not only is it Credo's prerogative, it's shrewd marketing, too, because it reinforces the brand with the company's core consumers. In the competitive telecommunications market, keeping customers can be more valuable to your business than acquiring new ones.

Still, corporate sponsorship of a protest march targeting a government that is hoping to capitalize on the corporate spectacle that is the modern Olympic Games.  I don't know...does anyone else see the irony here?