Labor

Imagine a world where everyone who chooses to can go to college. Picture a world where workers on school campuses and in communities have a voice about their working conditions and where the fruits and vegetables that people eat are picked by workers who earn a living wage. Imagine a time when students and others can proudly wear university apparel, knowing the workers who made the clothing were paid fairly with basic rights including breaks, safe working conditions and an eight-hour workday. And finally, think about what it will be like when jobs not only support workers but also protect the environment.

Shawn Boone did not die instantly five years ago at the Hayes Lemmerz plant in Huntington, Ind. He was lying on the floor, his body smoldering, as the aluminum dust burned through his flesh and then his muscles. With every breath he took, more of his internal organs burned. Still conscious and blinded from the initial blast, he begged for help as they loaded him into the ambulance.

New York — Parents, students, teachers and administrators rallied at City Hall March 20 to protest state and city budget cuts to schools. Despite a driving rain, over 10,000 people turned out for the rally called by the Keep the Promises Coalition, made up of 60 community, parent and education groups, along with their allies in the labor movement.

HOUSTON — About 1,000 medical students and their supporters rallied here at city hall March 14 to demand healthcare for all. The event was organized by the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) as part of its annual convention and supported by the local SEIU and Justice for Janitors movement.

Inside UAW Local 235 in Hamtramck, across the street from the largest of the struck American Axle plants, Ray Wood, President of UAW Local 14 at the GM powertrain in Toledo was speaking to Local President Adrian King and Vice President Bill Alford.

Everywhere Republican presidential candidate John McCain goes these days he is finding union activists confronting him on economic issues and demanding that he speak to working families’ concerns. Since March 1, union members have held actions at McCain events in Ohio, Missouri and New Hampshire.

CLEVELAND — Labor and its progressive allies scored a major victory in the Democratic primary here March 4 when Congressman Dennis Kucinich beat back a heavily financed effort to take his seat.

Only a week after releasing the most dismal consumer spending figures in eight years, the government said, March 7, that 63,000 workers lost their jobs in February — another sure sign that the economy is in full recession.

SAN ANTONIO — Emma Tenayuca was a resident and radical militant of San Antonio’s working class west side. Her political formation was shaped, if not heavily influenced, by her early exposure to frequent political rallies and fiery speeches which took place at the Plaza del Zacate with the backdrop of the Great Depression and the early years of nearby Mexico’s revolutionary government.

DETROIT—The United Auto Workers struck American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc at 12:01 a.m. Feb. 26 when no deal was reached on a new labor pact. The largest proportion of American Axle parts are for GM’s pickups and SUVs. Affected are 3,600 workers in plants in Michigan and New York.