March Against Monsanto Brings Fight for GMO-Free Life to Miami Streets This Weekend

In the age of Trump, a political march that doesn't explicitly have anything to do with the Donald or with either Democrats or Republicans is a rare beast. But that's exactly what Trish Sheldon says this Saturday's March Against Monsanto is all about.

By Tim Elfrink

May 17, 2017

Image: Marchers at last year's edition of the March Against Monsanto.

Marchers at last year's edition of the March Against Monsanto. courtesy GMO Free Florida

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In the age of Trump, a political march that doesn't explicitly have anything to do with the Donald or with either Democrats or Republicans is a rare beast. But that's exactly what Trish Sheldon says this Saturday's March Against Monsanto is all about.

"This is an all-party issue, because we're all eaters," says Sheldon, an organizer with GMO Free Florida. "We should have a basic right to clean food, safe water, and we should use precautionary principles before moving forward with science."

For the fifth year running, the March Against Monsanto will bring hundreds of protesters downtown to make their voice heard about the genetically modified plants and pesticides produced by the agribusiness giant. This year's march will particularly concentrate on glyphosates, a kind of chemical — used most famously in Roundup — that the World Health Organization recently found likely causes cancer in humans.

"It's still being used in our food and on our wheat, and it's being sprayed in our parks and our schools," Sheldon says.

Last year's march drew about 2,000 people, and Sheldon says she expects similar numbers this year. Following the march, Wynwood's Toejam Backlot will host an afterparty with nearly a dozen bands.

The march begins at 3 p.m. outside the Adrienne Arsht Center's Metromover stop, and ToeJam's afterparty begins at 4:30.

Tim Elfrink is a former investigative reporter and managing editor for Miami New Times. He has won the George Polk Award and was a finalist for the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting.

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