McDonald's attempt to silence anyone who dares to criticise them. The threat of legal proceedings and humiliating apologies has effectively gagged the conventional media.There is one exception: the two-year-long McLibel Trial. Instead of squashing London Greenpeace's small-scale protests, the burger giants have spent £5 million making What's Wrong With McDonald's the most famous and widely-distributed protest leaflets in history. More than a million and a half copies have been handed out since the writs were served in 1990.
Some time in early 1997 the judge will deliver his verdict. There is no jury, so the outcome of two years of arguments, 180 witnesses and 20,000 pages of evidence will depend on one man's opinion. The issues at stake are matters of great public concern which should be debated openly and freely. We must not let McDonald's stifle that debate.
On the Saturday after the verdict, the aim is to picket every single McDonald's store in Britain. That's over 600 places, so we'll need all the help we can get.
You can pledge to join in the fun here - either by adopting your local store, or by sending your details to one of the coordinators who will then contact you nearer the time.
Alternatively, see the comprehensive list of stores.
The Adopt-a-Store campaign is being coordinated by Veggies.
If you are not based in the UK, please see the Campaigns pages for details of actions in your country.
McDonald's customers: feel free to use our efforts in setting up this system to find your nearest Big Mac.