Who's Boycotting Whom?

By PAUL GRAY/

The shop-till-you-drop tendencies of America's consumer society have lately been checked by an activist counterimpulse: a decision not to buy, patronize or otherwise reward. The reasons for nonspending vary, as do the targets. A checklist of some of them:

NIKE

Chicago's Operation PUSH wants people not to buy this brand of sports shoes. PUSH demands that Nike put an African American on its board, subject to PUSH approval. Nike spokesman superstar Michael Jordan is disavowing the boycott.

MILLER BEER

Homosexual-rights groups have launched a no-suds campaign to protest a contribution by Miller's parent company, Philip Morris, to the re-election campaign of Jesse Helms. The Senator favors tobacco subsidies but not gays.

MIAMI

That's right, Miami, an entire city, is facing a movement by black organizations to hold conventions elsewhere. Reason? In June the city commission refused to honor visiting Nelson Mandela because of his comments supporting Fidel Castro.

FOLGERS

Several national peace groups have urged a ban on the top-selling brand of coffee in the U.S. for importing beans from El Salvador and thereby, so the argument goes, fortifying the right-wing regime and prolonging a 10-year civil war.

ESQUIRE

Feminist groups, including the National Organization for Women, were outraged by the June cover story called "Your Wife: An Owner's Manual." They have organized campaigns urging subscribers to cancel and advertisers to withdraw support.

With reporting by David E. Thigpen