The Trump administration’s decision to mobilize and deploy 4,000 members of the National Guard and 700 Marines to Los Angeles is disturbing and absolutely unjustified. It is an attempt to stifle dissent through military force — something which has no place in a democracy — and a signal that if we wish to preserve our democratic freedoms, working people will have to be prepared to defend them through action in the streets, in our workplaces, and at the ballot box. Furthermore, it is clear that the administration is seeking to create physical conflict during immigration raids in order to justify a military response.

Protests against raids by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including the mass protests in Los Angeles over the past several days, have been overwhelmingly peaceful, especially considering the deliberatively provocative behavior of ICE agents. At a protest in Chicago last week, according to an eyewitness, “When [federal law enforcement] came on the scene, they gave no orders. They didn’t ask anybody to disperse. They didn’t give any instructions. They just immediately began using their batons to push.”

According to the lawsuit filed by the State of California against Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hesgeth, ICE agents in Los Angeles “engaged in military-style operations” which included “sealing off entire streets around targeted buildings and using unmarked armored vehicles equipped with paramilitary gear.” The Los Angeles Police Department was also deliberately provocative, showing up to the peaceful protests in riot gear and paramilitary equipment, shooting journalists with rubber bullets, and arresting David Huerta, the president of SEIU California.

The recent ICE raids in Los Angeles, Chicago and elsewhere have targeted workplaces, reinforcing the reality that although Trump tries to portray all immigrants as criminals and terrorists, the overwhelming majority are workers. As our union and the rest of the labor movement have learned over the past half-century, the real purpose of immigration enforcement is to maintain a permanent underclass of workers afraid to stand up for their rights — which drags down wages and working conditions for all workers.

Deliberately provoking violence and then using the response to justify massive military crackdowns on civilian protest is one of the ways that democracies slide into authoritarianism. We know from the experience of other countries where the working class has defeated authoritarian governments that the labor movement, with our power to stop work, has an important role to play alongside mass mobilizations in the streets. If we prize our liberties and wish to maintain our rights, the labor movement and working people more broadly must denounce the unconscionable use of the U.S. military against our own people and prepare to engage in widespread nonviolent resistance if it continues.

Carl Rosen
General President

Andrew Dinkelaker
Secretary-Treasurer

Mark Meinster
Director of Organization

By UE Officers | Photo Courtesy of ueunion.org | UE News Reuse Policy

The post UE: Military Response to Immigration Protests a Step Towards Authoritarianism first appeared on Labor Today.

We are inspired by the courage of the people of Los Angeles and join in their call for Brother Huerta’s release, and the release of all those who have been persecuted in the Trump Administration’s vicious and hateful raids.

Make no mistake – Brother Huerta’s arrest and the ongoing violence directed at our immigrant communities constitute an attack on the entire working class. We must stand together and fight for our sisters and brothers who are being harassed, arrested, detained, and deported. An injury to one is an injury to all.

In Solidarity,
Public Rail Now

The post Public Rail Now Condemns the Arrest of David Huerta and Stands in Solidarity with Immigrant Communities first appeared on Labor Today.

The argument was over priorities. Several unions, including the SEIU, had argued for a shift in emphasis, away from the more classical “business unionism” of the Cold War, in which labor-management cooperation was highly valued and at least some heavy lifting on labor’s agenda was done, not by labor itself, but by “rewarding (political) friends and punishing enemies” at the ballot box. These diffident unions argued that better results would be achieved by building the unions themselves—organizing the unorganized, educating members and non-members about what unions are and how they work, and by a greater willingness to confront management in worksites, over petitioning various levels of government to act on labor’s behalf when labor didn’t have the strength to win its gains in industries.

When the AFL-CIO stymied such reform efforts, the SEIU and other unions broke away, founding instead something called the “Change to Win Coalition,” which proceeded to do what it had been advocating for the Federation do. And over time, CTW had the gains to show for it. In the intervening couple of decades, the AFL-CIO itself has changed, reorienting much of its overall operations along the lines originally advocated by Change to Win. An example would be the new directions recently taken by the United Auto Workers (UAW).

In the end, having won the argument, it made little sense to remain outside of the Federation, and its leadership. The re-affiliation of the SEIU to the AFL-CIO brings the latter’s overall number from 12 million to 14.9 million. Given the storm clouds already heralding the second Trump regime, such unity will be essential to confront it, to hold ground, and even to make gains, regardless of Washington’s policy.

The post SEIU Re-affiliates with the AFL-CIO first appeared on Labor Today.

President Biden,

We write to publicly call upon your Administration to immediately halt all military aid to Israel as part of the work to secure an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the war in Gaza.

We all shared hope that the three-part ceasefire proposal you outlined in the final week of May would bear fruit, allowing for the immediate end of violence, the safe return of hostages, and the creation of space for a lasting peace.

As we write you today, however, neither Israel nor Hamas has accepted the agreement as proposed. Prime Minister Netanyahu and his cabinet members have publicly refused key elements of the deal, despite your characterizing it as an Israeli proposal.

As you said on May 31, the Israeli response has “devastated Hamas forces over the past eight months” and that “Hamas [is] no longer capable of carrying out another October 7th.” Yet it is clear that the Israeli government will continue to pursue its vicious response to the horrific attacks of October 7th until it is forced to stop.

We believe that immediately cutting US military aid to the Israeli government is necessary
to bring about a peaceful resolution to this conflict.

Recent reports only underscore the urgency of our demands. Large numbers of Palestinian civilians, many of them children, continue to be killed, reportedly often with US-manufactured bombs. Rising tensions in the region threaten to ensnare even more innocent civilians in a wider war. And the humanitarian crisis deepens by the day, with famine, mass displacement, and destruction of basic infrastructure including schools and hospitals. We have spoken directly to leaders of Palestinian trade unions who told us heart-wrenching stories of the conditions faced by working people in Gaza.

Furthermore, Israel’s refusal to minimize civilian harm and its demonstrated restriction of U.S. humanitarian aid call for a halt to U.S. military aid under the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Control Export Act.

Mr. President, the time to act decisively to end this war is now. Stopping US military aid to Israel is the quickest and most sure way to do so, it is what U.S. law demands, and it will show your commitment to securing a lasting peace in the region.

Signed,
Association of Flight Attendants (AFA)
American Postal Workers Union (APWU)
International Union of Painters (IUPAT)
National Education Association (NEA)
Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
United Auto Workers (UAW)
United Electrical Workers (UE)

The post Seven Unions Call on Biden to Halt All Military Aid to Israel first appeared on Labor Today.

Disney Workers Rising, which is a coalition of four unions—The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM) Local 83, SEIU-United Service Workers West, Teamsters Local 495, and the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 324—along with community members and other unions from around the country, demonstrated vigorously in favor of Disneyland resort workers’ demands. Disney guests and patrons left supportive comments on Disney’s social media accounts, raising awareness of the poor pay and working conditions.

David Hernandez, Shop Steward for Teamsters Local 495 declared:

“We are fed up with being pushed around by Disney and are ready to fight back against its unfair labor practices. Disney believes it can bully us into accepting a subpar contract by violating our rights, but they are wrong. We are united, strong, and prepared to strike to secure the fair contract we deserve.”

Following the rally, a strike authorization vote was held Friday with more than 99% of votes cast to authorize an Unfair Labor Practice strike. The NLRB received over 200 cases against Disney after they ordered hundreds of union members to remove their union buttons, including acts of retaliation against them. Contract negotiations resume July 22^nd and 23^rd. If Disney doesn’t cooperate with the four unions, they can call on nearly 9000 cast members to involve themselves in the ULP strike.

The post After Massive Rally, Disneyland Workers Authorize ULP Strike first appeared on Labor Today.