Hundreds of people gathered at Federation Square in Melbourne on September 14 to oppose the planned construction of a McDonald’s restaurant opposite a primary school in the Dandenong Ranges town of Tecoma.
The demonstration included performances by the Tecoma flash mob and musicians, colourful handmade signs and costumes, passionate speakers, and the launch of a documentary about the campaign, which detailed the events of Tecoma’s ongoing fight against the corporate bullying of McDonald’s over the past year.
McDonald’s lodged a planning application for a 24-hour restaurant in 2011. It was met with 1170 objections to the proposal by residents, as well as unanimous rejection by the Shire of Yarra Ranges Council.
The strength and dedication of Tecoma’s residents in this David and Goliath story has inspired thousands. The campaign has gathered overwhelming public support.
An online petition has received more than 92,000 signatures. Change.org helped to raise $35,000 for the campaign, which has been used to send a team of Tecoma community members to the McDonald’s head office in Chicago to deliver the petition.
No McDonald's in the Dandenong Ranges spokesperson Garry Muratore told the Chicago Tribune that planning to build near the pristine forest of the Dandenong Ranges was “a little bit like putting a McDonald's right near Mount Rushmore.”
Dandenong Ranges community member Simone Patterson, who is an active member of the campaign, said Tecoma residents were strongly opposed to a McDonald’s because the appeal of the area was that: “It’s free of food corporations and billboard advertising … We have certain values in the Dandenongs, and they don’t reflect the values of that corporation.”
Another reason why so many people from the Dandenong Ranges and beyond are so infuriated by the planned Tecoma restaurant is that it directly opposes community democracy.
Patterson said: “A lot of people, apart from hating McDonald’s, have gone ‘hang on a minute… does that mean we don’t have a voice? Does that mean local council means nothing? Does that mean democracy is broken?’ Yeah, I think it does.”
[You can find detailed information and updates about the campaign at burgeroff.org.]