Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

Labor

By Brad Sigal

_Unions, workers and immigrants will unite for International Workers Day _

Saint Paul, MN May 1st flyer

St. Paul, MN – On May 1 workers, unions and immigrants will march together to the capitol in Saint Paul to demand justice for workers, to defend workers’ freedom to organize and to demand legalization and full equality for immigrant workers. The march will be held on the 125th anniversary of International Workers Day, or May Day.

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By Dave Welsh

_Dockworkers shut down ports of Oakland and San Francisco for 24 hours _

Oakland, CA – The power of workers to bring production to a halt was on dramatic display April 4, when longshore workers of ILWU Local 10 shut down the ports of Oakland and San Francisco for 24 hours, in solidarity with the heroic struggles in Wisconsin.

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By staff

Athens, Greece – Under banners reading, “Class Unity and Struggles; Internationalism and Solidarity,” 800 trade union leaders from around the world came together here, April 7, for the start of the 16th Congress of the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU).

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By staff

Photo of April 4 protest in Newark, NJ.

Newark, NJ – Around 600 people turned out on here April 4 for a March for Jobs, Peace, Equality and Justice initiated by the People’s Organization for Progress. The date marked the 1968 assassination of Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. A speaking program followed at Essex Community College.

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By staff

April 4 protest for workers rights in St Paul.

St. Paul, MN – More than 3500 trade unionists and their supporters marched here, April 4, to stand up for workers’ rights on the anniversary the Martin Luther King Jr.’s murder. A sea of signs and banners filled John Ireland Boulevard as workers marched to the state capitol building.

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By Fight Back! Editors

March 12 protest against attacks on public workers. Wisconsin workers plan to jo

April 4 is a day to stand up and be counted. We urge all readers of Fight Back! to join the nationwide protests that are set for April 4, the anniversary of the assassination of the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. Say no to the attacks on public employees and on the rights of working people.

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By staff

Columbus, OH – Around 700 workers, students and community activists poured into and around the statehouse here yesterday, including 200 who were admitted to the House gallery to witness the passage of Senate Bill 5.

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By Jared Hamil

Students, workers, and community members take a lane as they march downtown to C

Gainesville, FL – About 300 workers and students demonstrated here, March 25, against the state government's attacks and cuts. The protest was organized by Fight Back Florida, a coalition of union members and students who organized rallies all over the state. In addition to Gainesville's rally and march, 14 other cities joined in a day of action against Governor Rick Scott's attempt to make public employees pay for the budget crisis. People around Florida joined together to tell the government that if it cuts back, “we will fight back.”

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By Kim DeFranco

March 17 press conference

Minneapolis, MN – In a packed press conference March 17, retail cleaning workers with the Center of Workers United in Struggle (CTUL, Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha) and their allies called upon Cub Foods to put an end to retaliation, violent reactions to peaceful protests and to meet with cleaning workers. The workers are demanding that Cub establish a code of conduct ensuring fair wages and working conditions for all workers who clean their stores.

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By Tom Burke

March 15 protest slams Governor Snyder

Grand Rapids, MI – 150 people protested here, March 15, against Michigan Governor Rick Snyder’s plans to impose extreme budget cuts to health clinics, schools and other social services. The crowd chanted, “It’s not fair!” “Chop from the top!” and “They say cut back. We say fight back!” outside a health clinic serving mainly women and children on Cherry Street in Grand Rapids.

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By staff

Photo ofMarch 14 protest at UWN.

Milwaukee, WI – Hundreds rallied at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), March 14, as protests continue against Governor Scott Walker's anti-union, anti-people attacks. The rally was the third mass action taken at the university in recent weeks and included speeches by student, community and union leaders.

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By mick

Photo of tractors at Wisconsin labor march.

Madison, WI – More than 50 tractors, some with manure spreaders, joined the massive March 12 protest at the Wisconsin state capitol here. The Farmer Labor Tractorcade was organized by the Wisconsin Farmers Union and Family Farm Defenders.

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By staff

Crowd of 150,000 people in Madison March 12.

Madison, WI – As of 3:00 p.m. today, March 12, the number of protesters at the state capitol here has swelled to more than 150,000. Senators who had left Wisconsin in an attempt to block Governor Walker’s union-busting legislations returned to an enthusiastic welcome.

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By Freedom Road Socialist Organization

Freedom Road Socialist Organization salutes the workers, students and community participants in the March 12 protest in Madison, Wisconsin. Everyone filling the streets around the state capitol is sending a clear message to the rich and powerful – we will not sit back in silence while our right to collectively bargain is taken away. The moment has arrived to stand up and do whatever it takes to defend our unions, our standard of living, and our future.

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By staff

Madison, WI – As of 1:00 pm today, March 12, about 70,000 protesters have converged on the Wisconsin State Capitol. Trade unionists and supporters from around the state are arriving in buses. The streets around the capitol are full of marchers, with more arriving every moment.

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By staff

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following article from Workers World

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By staff

Protest in Madison

Madison, WI – Massive protests are expected here, March 12. Tens of thousands of workers, students and community members are expected to converge on the state capitol Saturday afternoon. Buses have been chartered from across the state.

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By Jacob Flom

Photo journalist Jacob Flom has created a powerful photo essay documenting the struggle inside the Wisconsin capitol during the final hours before the State Assembly stripped public workers of the right to bargain collectively. Flom’s photographs are visual testaments to the power and determination of Wisconsin workers who will continue their fight until victory.

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By staff

Madison, WI – After weeks of intense struggle across Wisconsin, on March 10 the state assembly has passed the union-busting bill pushed by Governor Scott Walker and the Republican Party. The assembly voted 53-42 in favor of the bill, which is expected to be signed into law by Governor Walker shortly.

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By staff

Hallway outside Assembly where protesters were dragged out

Madison, WI – As Republicans made use of a parliamentary maneuver to ram through major sections of their anti-union legislation, thousands stormed the Capitol last night, March 9, and hundreds remained overnight.

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