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“Day Without an Immigrant” March in Los Angeles
Read more: “Day Without an Immigrant” March in Los AngelesOn May 1, 2006 hundreds of thousands marched in Los Angeles and other large U.S. cities in support of immigrant rights. Called by many “A Day without an Immigrant,” the May Day protests were the culmination of months of planning in response to a punitive immigration bill that passed the U.S. House of Representatives (H.R. […]
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Miguel Contreras: Warrior for Working Families
Read more: Miguel Contreras: Warrior for Working FamiliesAs leader of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, Miguel Contreras (1952-2005) reshaped LA’s unions into a powerful political, economic, and social force. When Contreras was 17, his family attended a rally in support of Senator Robert Kennedy’s campaign for president where they met Cesar Chávez, leader of the United Farm Workers (UFW). Miguel […]
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Victory at Last: Hotel workers reflect on contract victory
Read more: Victory at Last: Hotel workers reflect on contract victoryFor 14 months during 2004-2005, UNITE HERE Local 11 mounted an assertive campaign to win a contract with employers represented by the Los Angeles Hotel Employers Council. Building on the union’s rank-and-file strategy, hotel workers organized repeated delegations to articulate their demands to hotel management. The union also mobilized community allies and the labor movement […]
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David Beats Goliath: How Inglewood defeated WalMart
Read more: David Beats Goliath: How Inglewood defeated WalMartIn 2004, WalMart announced its intentions to build a massive new superstore in Inglewood. The proposed developed was to be a supersized store that would be the size of 17 football fields, threatening to displace local small businesses and other grocery and retail stores in the area, many of which maintained union contracts with the […]
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“That stopped everything”: Rosa Beltran Reflects on Justice for Janitors
Read more: “That stopped everything”: Rosa Beltran Reflects on Justice for JanitorsRosa Beltran, veteran member of the SEIU’s Justice for Janitors campaign, reflects on the power of rank-and-file union members “La huelga del 2000 fue una victoria— Yo estaba fuera de mi edificio piqueteando 24 horas seguidas, 24 horas deteniendo, durmiendo, pegado a los containers de basura porque como Uniones, si la Unión de los basureros […]
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Una Causa Justa | A Just Cause
Read more: Una Causa Justa | A Just CauseThis editorial from La Opinion reflects the widespread support for the Justice for Janitors campaign in the Spanish-speaking community of Los Angeles. The writer argues that the janitors’ demands are modest, and that their aggressive campaign reflects a broad dissatisfaction with the power structure in LA. Translated from Spanish by Stephanie Dyer. A Just Cause, […]
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“We call each other sister unions”
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Read more: “We call each other sister unions”Rocio Sáenz recalls the spirit of solidarity among unions in the early 1990s I come from Mexico City, and I had a union there. Even though, looking back at the unions in Mexico, they were often very corrupt, at the time I thought it was better than nothing. When I came to the U.S., I […]
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Let Justice Roll Down
Read more: Let Justice Roll DownThe Working Poor: Challenge to the Religious Community What is the responsibility of people of faith when confronted with the poverty of working people in a wealthy country? That question is posed by Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE) in this 2000 video featuring the testimony of working people, faith leaders, academics, and […]
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“They were willing to break with tradition”
Read more: “They were willing to break with tradition”Maria Elena Durazo recalls her first organizing job “On a trip to Mexico I met Cristina Vázquez and others from the International Ladies’ Garment Workers Union (ILGWU or ILG, now Workers United-SEIU). And when we came back, Cristina referred me to the union for a job. I was already familiar with the work of the […]
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Fast for USC Workers
Read more: Fast for USC WorkersHERE Local 11’s campaign at USC began in 1996, when USC began contracting out janitorial and food service work on campus, threatening the good wages and benefits (including mortgage and tuition programs) of dozens of workers. In solidarity with their colleagues from SEIU Local 399 (Justice for Janitors), members of HERE Local 11 refused to […]