Dec 10, 2005

A major new push for workers’ rights to form unions was kicked off this week at scores of events from Albuquerque to Orlando, leading up to International Human Rights Day, Dec. 10.

On almost any rainless day, anglers may be observed fishing the waters of North Texas’ Trinity River. The pickup trucks, ice chests and laughing children running ahead of parents, and jockeying for a nice flat rock on which to stake a fishing base, suggest a rosy picture of outdoor family fun.

AFL-CIO President John Sweeney was greeted with a standing ovation when he told a crowd at a Quaker Meeting House in Philadelphia, Dec. 6, that union rights are human rights and workers everywhere must stand up to defend those rights. The town hall meeting was one of scores of similar rallies in 100 cities this week leading up to International Human Rights Day, Dec. 10.

We observe United Nations Human Rights Day, Dec. 10, with a sobering realization: In the opinion of hundreds of millions of people around the world, the Bush administration has become the worst human rights abuser of any regime in the world. Consider the following:

Vets for Peace; L.A. Times pulls a fast one; David Cohen; Better weather ahead; Death penalty; Contacting Colin Powell; Steinbrenner tramples parks

When Hurricane Katrina tore up the roof of my house, it didn’t care that I’m Black. My white neighbors, like my Black neighbors, saw trees fall on their homes and saw their refrigerators rot and mold. They, like I, lived without electricity or phone for over a week after that color-blind natural disaster.

I’ve been following New Orleans and all the other lesser-known communities along the coast which have been devastated because of deliberate neglect by a government that has forgotten how to be, if it ever was, a government of, by and for the people.

CLEVELAND — Rick Nagin’s campaign in the Cleveland City Council primary this October, while not successful, broke new ground for labor and its allies and contributed decisively to a progressive victory in the final election.

CLEVELAND — Hold onto your hats! Ohio’s recently passed Issue 1 could mean a lot of different things. Only time will tell exactly what Ohio voters did on Nov. 8. But voters across the country would be well advised to study these developments carefully, as similar proposals are bound to show up in other states in future elections. Try not to fall asleep as you read on, as the issues are a little complex.

Acclaimed historian Dr. John Hope Franklin spoke recently at the University of Chicago on his life experience as a scholar, an activist and a person. The talk, facilitated by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, covered Franklin’s personal life and also touched on a number of connected social issues. At the end of the evening, Franklin answered questions from the audience and signed copies of his newly-published autobiography “Mirror to America.”