News Archives » faith consistent investing
Oblate Shareholder Activism Appreciated May 22nd, 2013
Oblate shareholder activism was recognized recently by Richard Eskow*, blogging on Huffington Post about the morality (or lack thereof) of our financial system. Here is an excerpt from his blog:
“Unethical or lawbreaking bankers are morally responsible for their actions. We didn’t break the law or throw people out of their homes. They did.
But even if we don’t share in the guilt, we share the responsibility. Did we do everything we could to stop them? They’re too powerful, people will say, and that’s true. But we have a responsibility to try, and to keep on trying, no matter what. We have a responsibility to engage in the great effort, which is a struggle for better regulation and a more humane economy. It’s also a struggle for hearts and minds – Dimon’s, the media’s, and our own. We should be demanding more – of the banks that serve us, of the media that entertain (if not inform) us, of the government agencies that work for us.
Futures
And we should be demanding more of us. These union pension funds, institutional investors at JPMorgan Chase, took action today to change the way business is done there. So did Father Seamus Finn of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, who introduced one of the resolutions on behalf of a family trust with JPM shares.
More of us need to join them in concerted, constructive economic activism. We can also work to reduce our dependence on the kinds of loans that lead to financial servitude, to the extent that’s possible in this harsh economic climate.”
Read the Huffington Post blog by Richard Eskow on JP Morgan Chase
*Richard Eskow is a writer, and host of ‘The Breakdown’, as well as a Senior Fellow at Campaign for America’s Future
Missionary Oblates Join Other Institutional Investors in Calling for Comprehensive Immigration Reform May 1st, 2013
Missionary Oblates joined more than 70 institutional investors in a letter calling on Congress to take immediate action and pass common-sense immigration reform. The organizations consist of investors representing $890.5 billion in assets on behalf of major pension funds, non-profit organizations and socially conscious and faith-based investors.
The investors’ letter says, “We believe comprehensive reform must be developed and implemented consistent with the human rights of all concerned, must value the integrity of families and must prevent immigrant workers be they temporary or permanent from being subjected to second-class employment standards.”
Read the letter (Download PDF)
Lives Destroyed, Dreams Crushed and Cheap Clothes April 29th, 2013
The collapse of a large eight-story garment factory in Savar on the outskirts of Dhaka a few days ago has resulted in numerous images, stories and reports. The loss of more that 300 lives, most of them young parents, alongside the countless number that have suffered serious injuries, has resulted in immeasurable pain, suffering and anger.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time that the spotlight has been directed on the garment industry in Bangladesh.
Read Fr. Finn’s latest blog on Huffington Post…
Streetwise Highlights Faith Consistent Investment Work January 3rd, 2013
A series of recent articles in Streetwise focusing on socially responsible investing, look at the work of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), the financial crisis and shadow banking system from the perspective of faith-consistent investors, and “doing well by doing good”. Streetwise, a social service agency in Chicago serving the homeless and at-risk population, combines immediate access to earned income through the sale of their newspaper with an array of social service supports.
Click here to read more »
2012 Fall/Winter JPIC Report Available November 8th, 2012
The Fall/Winter Issue of our bi-annual print newsletter is now available on-line. (Download the PDF)
This issue includes articles on Faith Consistent Investing, social justice education in Sri Lanka, campaigns against torture and the effort to ban conflict minerals, Oblate work in the Peruvian Amazon, faith-based principles for US immigration reform, JPIC network updates, the impact of climate change on the poor, the state of faith-based community organizing and the bountiful Oblate garden in Washington, DC.
We hope you enjoy this issue, and would welcome your feedback on the newsletter. Comments can be left below.
