By Andrew Hackmack
Despite the icy sidewalk, chilly temperatures and intermittent rain, the protesters were not deterred. With signs reading "Black Friday kills" and "Welcome to Kill-Mart," the protesters encouraged drivers to honk in support of their cause.
Jdimytai Damour, a 34-year-old worker from a temporary employment agency, was killed when customers stormed in the Valley Stream Wal-Mart at 5 a.m. on Nov. 28. According to police, Damour was assigned to work crowd control yet was not a trained security guard.
Nadia Marin-Molina, executive director of the Workplace Project, was one of the protesters standing along Sunrise Highway at the mall's western-most entrance on Dec. 21. "We're here to show solidarity with the family of Mr. Damour," she said.
Marin-Molina said that she was there to call on Wal-Mart to put the safety of its employees ahead of its profits. Calling Damour's death "avoidable," she said a crowd-control plan should have been in place for the Black Friday sales event.
"Wal-Mart needs to be held accountable," she said. "They certainly played a role in this situation."
Monica Diaz, also with the Workplace Project, agreed. She said that the incident on Black Friday should never have happened. Diaz noted that more security and better organization could have prevented this tragedy. "We're here to let Wal-Mart know they should care about workers more and not just about profits."
Diaz added that a worker's life is not worth four or five hundred dollars, like one of the television sets that was advertised for the store's Black Friday sales special.
The Workplace Project, based in Hempstead, is a nonprofit organization that organizes low-wage Latino immigrants to fight for better working and living conditions. The group was joined by members of the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health, a nonprofit coalition of labor unions and individuals dedicated to the right of health and safety for all workers.
David Pratt, a health and safety specialist for NYCOSH, said that every year 5,800 people are killed on the job. "We want to let not just Wal-Mart, but all corporations know that it is not OK for workers to show up on the job and not return home," he said.
Pratt said that with the downtown in the economy, it is likely that more stores will be turning to temporary workers, like Damour, for help. It is important that they have a safe work environment, Pratt explained.
He was pleased people did come out to support worker's rights despite short planning for the protest and adverse weather conditions. Pratt said they chose the spot on Sunrise Highway because the protesters would be very visible and decided to start at noon because it is a peak shopping time.
Dan Fogelman, a spokesman for Wal-Mart, said that the company is committed to improving safety. "We're looking forward to working with law enforcement officials, lawmakers and other retailers to implement stronger safety measures for Black Friday going forward," he said.
Marin-Molina said she wanted to get people thinking twice about where they would shop. "We're hoping they're not going in to shop at Wal-Mart," she said. "If they do, remember they are going where a worker's blood was spilled."
Comments about this story? AHackmack@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 265.
