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LAUSANNE

‘We are not anti-American’: Lausanne residents fight against US fast-food giants

Thousands of Lausanne residents have joined forces to protest against an influx of US fast food restaurants, but insist they are not anti-American.

'We are not anti-American': Lausanne residents fight against US fast-food giants
AFP

Some 3,200 Lausanne residents signed a petition asking municipal authorities to limit the number of fast-food restaurants allowed to operate in the city. 

Members of the left-wing Workers’ Party (POP) launched the petition in response to the recent opening of a Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) restaurant in Lausanne’s Flon district and a Five Guys hamburger diner in the city center.

“This is not an anti-American campaign. It focuses on the devastating health, social, and environmental consequences of fast food”, the petition’s organizers said.

GastroLausanne, an association representing local restaurants, said that POP’s request to restrict fast-food eateries is hard to swallow because it “goes against the right of each person to choose what they eat”.

The association added that “a chain like KFC can occupy a place that would probably have remained empty for a long time and offers many students a job that allows them to finance their studies”.

Several US fast-food chains are present in Lausanne – as well as across Switzerland — including McDonald’s, Burger King, and Subway.

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Member comments

  1. there is nothing wrong with a weekend afternoon of tv and junk food, especially fried chicken.. but who can afford kfc when battery chickens at migro cost 17fr .. the thing is, the kfc franchise doesn’t just sell fried chicken, they build chicken farms, they have logistics and distribution centers, and they make chicken affordable. this lausanne issue is run by syndicates of big business .. they want you to pay 17chf for a battery chicken. kfc will kill the market .

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EMPLOYMENT

Hear ye, here ye! This Swiss city is looking for a town crier

Can you carry a tune? Are you a night owl? If so, this job posting in Switzerland may be up right up your (cobblestone) alley. Here’s how you can submit an application for this… very high position.

Hear ye, here ye! This Swiss city is looking for a town crier
The hat and coat are optional for the job. Photo by Lausanne Tourisme

As far as unusual employment opportunities go, this one from Lausanne is — quite literally — tops.

The city, which employs one of Europe’s last remaining town criers, is looking for people to fill this position on part-time basis.

What’s a town crier?

In Lausanne’s case, it is a person who announces the hours every night between 10 pm and 2 am from the bell tower of the city’s imposing Gothic cathedral, a landmark overlooking the roofs of the picturesque Old Town.

The workplace: Lausanne Cathedral. Photo by Lausanne Tourisme

The person who will assume this position will continue a tradition that this city in the canton of Vaud has cherished since 1405.

These are the requirements for the job:

  • To watch over the city each night
  • Announce each hour on the hour between 10pm and 2am in a melodious voice (in French, but knowledge of foreign languages is a plus)
  • Be able to climb 53 stone steps to the cathedral’s bell tower
  • Not have a criminal record
  • No falling asleep on the job
  • Have a business apprenticeship certificate (we are not sure why)

This is 365-days-a-year job, but the new hire will share the position with other criers.

Interested? This is how you can apply.

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