Wednesday, April 14
12:30 PM
Northern Trust Building, 50 S. LaSalle

On Wednesday, April 14, the annual Caterpillar Shareholder Meeting at the Northern Trust Building in Chicago will be the target of a protest by peace and human rights activist groups demanding that the Peoria-based company cease all sales to the Israeli military and government.

Caterpillar bulldozers are being used by Israel in the Palestinian Territories to destroy homes and to destroy lives. It is time for shareholders to put a stop to the crimes against humanity that are committed with Caterpillar equipment.”

Inside the Caterpillar Shareholders Meeting, two groups of stockholders, the Ursuline Sisters and the Sisters of Loretto, have placed a resolution on Caterpillar’s proxy statement asking the company’s board to name a panel of outside directors to evaluate whether the sale of bulldozers to Israel violates the company’s code of worldwide business conduct.

According to the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ww.icahd.org/eng) approximately 10,000 Palestinian homes have been illegally demolished by the Israeli military. The vast majority of these homes have been demolished using specially armored bulldozers manufactured Caterpillar.

On April 23 organizers expect over 1,000 demonstrators to join them in Peoria at Caterpillar Headquarters. In addition, non-violent direct action protests will take place on that day at Caterpillar facilities around the world. The Stop CAT Coalition will be bringing three demands to Caterpillar on April 23: that Caterpillar cease all sales to the Israeli military and government immediately; that James Owens, CEO of Caterpillar, meet with a small delegation at 3:00 PM; and that Caterpillar agrees to a fair contract for CAT workers.