a while ago i read this article in LA Magazine by Dave Gardetta. it is about the "secret" history of Trader Joe's. it was started by a man named Joe Coulombe in LA in the 1970's. in 1979 a German businessman named Theo Albrecht bought the stores & has run them under his family company since. he recenlty died in July 2010.
this is what i am troubled about. quoted from the article: "He was also a former soldier in Hitler’s army. Albrecht spent his military service in the Afrika Korps under General Erwin Rommel. It ended in Tunisia with his capture by American forces, whereupon he was transferred to a POW camp and held until his release after the war."
can i shop at Trader Joe's with a clean conscience anymore?? a nazi family owning TJ's? i've looked online for a while trying to see if the family had made any reparations to the Jewish community or any other type of penance, but have found nothing.
i've emailed a couple Jewish groups to get their opinion on this issue with a link to the article as well, but haven't heard back. i was hoping to include their response on this post.
maybe walmart & target aren't so bad??
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