LETTER CAMPAIGN TO OUST KEN FRAZIER. I believe one way to get Frazier off the Board is to go after Merck. Also here is Merck's on-line complaint form
By Eileen Morgan
We need to have a letter and email writing campaign and inundate Merck with constant contact regarding Frazier's remarks, esp. 'I don't care if they are acquitted.' They need to know:
#1 Frazier apparently doesn't care about the truth which means he doesn't actually care about the children. He doesn't care about the truth regarding the PA agencies that failed the children and are still operating status quo today.
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#2 Frazier does NOT care about due process. But, based on one-sided information, he deems himself the judge and jury and takes matter into his own hands and determines the verdict based on his opinion. This means every employee of Merck has no say or defense if an issue comes up re: their employment. They should feel very insecure working for a company with a man having this mindset at the helm.
#3. Let them know that we want Frazier OFF the Board at PSU and that until that happens we will be initiating a social media campaign via, facebook and twitter, that will travel the globe letting the stockholders of Merck know all about the man who runs Merck.
Here is the address and phone for Merck. The second contact info is for their Media Relations. What do you think? Just a one pager, once a week from all of us, should make an impact. And let's add MBNY (Peetz) and US Steel (Surma) writing campaigns too! I'm going to start writing….
One Merck Drive
P.O. Box 100
Whitehouse Station, NJ 08889
United States
1-908-423-1000
Steven Cragle
Head of Media Relations
+1 908-423-3461
steven.cragle@merck.com
Not to mention the tremendous moral responsibility the CEO of a drug maker ultimately carries for the safety and well-being of his customers. A failure of character, a breach of trust, a disruption of calm reason all carry the potential for catastrophic error at Merck. Lives could actually be at risk....oh, wait.
ReplyDeleteEileen, please clarify...are you proposing a single letter with multiple signatures being composed and sent weekly; or are you asking for individuals to communicate regularly with Merck under the common theme of having Frazier leave the PSU BoT?
ReplyDelete(I was particularly shocked by his referral to the "so-called " due process, etc standards of the US judicial system. Wow.)
rdk,
DeleteOne letter per person is much more effective than a single letter with multiple signatures. Hopefully, Linda Strumpf is not working in Merck's mailroom.
Ray
Hello Eileen,
ReplyDeleteHere is my MERCK Report Number: MERCK-13-03-0049. And here is what I wrote in the form as the issue:
That a Chairman of the Board of a major U.S. ethical pharmaceutical company should make such a racist remark, in a public forum (PSU Trustees Meeting), is absolutely disgraceful and totally unacceptable. Here are his exact words, "We are not subject to the criminal beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard, and you're a lawyer, so you can stop pretending that you think we are, Mr. Frazier told Mr. Cluck. Mr. Frazier went on to say "We can take employment actions, we can take corrective actions without any need to resort to so-called due process, reasonable doubt standard, and I don't care if they are acquitted. And you know the difference." Mr. Frazier continued by saying, "If you cared about that, you are one of the few people in this country that LOOKS LIKE YOU who actually believes the O.J. Simpson not guilty verdict was correct."
This is unbelievable, can you imagine, a White person telling an African American person in any statement or context "....that LOOKS LIKE YOU....." Any way you cut it, Mr. Frazier made a racist remark in a very disparaging way towards Mr. Cluck. In turn many of Mr. Cluck's supporter, and those of us who believe in civil discourse, and who use Merck products were offended. I speaking for myself, and some others demand nothing less than a public written apology (on Merck Letterhead) from Mr. Frazier for his disgusting remarks.
Trust me on this next statement. There are many people in the State of Pennsylvania and the nation who are Merck customers that are disgusted by Mr. Frazier's behavior and attitudes. I will await your response. Thank You.
Well done. I too have been e-mailing Mr. Cragle. I asked him whether MRK would want any of the 500k PSU alumni sitting on the next jury judging MRK. These guys need to realize that Frazier's continued presence on the BOT is a liability and will hurt them in the only place they care, the bottom line.
DeleteI also sent in a complaint.
DeleteThe comment section here in the Penn Stater Magazine is heating up:
ReplyDeletehttp://pennstatermag.com/2013/03/15/an-emotional-meeting-of-the-board-of-trustees/#comments
Thanks for the heads up, Wendy. Jeff Grimm's letter to Merck posted on this referenced article (Mar 17, 3:30) hits well on key points that should matter to Merck.
DeleteI love the Penn Staters' approach to problem-solving. Congrats on your progress to date. Becky
Statement from Scott Paterno on Frazier:
ReplyDeletehttp://paterno.com/Media-Release/2013-03-14.aspx#.UUYpG3BwaQL
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/12/merck_ceo_decided_to_head_penn.html
ReplyDeleteDisconnect here? This article, from Dec 2011, discusses the how and why, in his own words, that Ken Frazier came to lead the BoT's effort to deal with the blowback from the Sandusky case. Perhaps Frazier should be asked to revisit these remarks and comment on his satisfaction with what he's accomplished. Namely, that (1) the Sandusky Scandal was transformed into the Penn State Scandal; and (2) the real problem of PA's failed approach to child protection has gone unexamined!