Thursday, December 8, 2011

How Sotheby's CEO disgraces Univ. of Vermont



Sotheby's CEO Bill Ruprecht is on the University of Vermont's board of trustees. At a hoity-toity UV alumni reception, an Occupy Wall Street activist named Andy F (impersonating a UV alum) seized a microphone and recounted Ruprecht's shameful actions toward Teamsters Local 814 art handlers.

Here's what happened, according to the Occupy Wall Street Labor Outreach Committee:
When UVM’s interim President, John Bramley, finished giving his greetings and remarks he began to struggle with turning off the microphone. Andy was in the front row, and walked right up to him and offered to help him with it. John was relieved he didn’t have to figure that out, and Andy began his address. 
Andy kept his cool, spoke slowly, and fit right in. In the beginning, the lively crowd actually began shushing others around them so they could hear what he had to say. He was eventually escorted out, but oh so gently – except for the head lock someone put him in for a few seconds. They even let him keep talking into the mic as they were kindly walking him out the door.
And just a reminder of what Ruprecht was told about the lockout by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's girlfriend Diana Taylor here.