‘It’s in our UAW DNA’ to fight for everyone

UAW activists from Regions 1C and1D, encourage Kildee to endorse the union’s Principles for Fair Elections and to publicly support worker organizing efforts.

The vilification of American autoworkers was by design. But UAW members have proven how tough we are. We’ve successfully brought back the domestic auto industry through painful sacrifice and political action.

Now conservatives and their friends in government are trying to demonize public sector workers. We’ve seen this movie before. And through sacrifices already made, educating the public about the truth and political action, we’ll write an ending different than what the Chamber of Commerce and the Republican Party has in mind.

“We have been given such a gift to be in the UAW,” UAW President Bob King told delegates on the first day of the 2011 UAW National Community Action Program (CAP) Conference held Jan. 17-20 in Washington. “We can be UAW and proud. I don’t think any other union has the history of social activism, social justice and supporting others. With our UAW history and our UAW legacy, it’s up to all of us to prove that it’s in our UAW DNA to be out there fighting for everyone.”

There were plenty of guest speakers who know what needs to be done to turn America around and more than 1,000 UAW activists to help make it a reality.

Delegates lobbied lawmakers, participated in workshops and met to strategize on ways to advance our working family agenda in a Big Business-controlled political environment that has turned particularly nasty to working Americans.

“Our concern is not just for the UAW but for workers in general,” said Chris Del-Morone, UAW Local 1292 CAP chair in Grand Blanc, Mich. “It’s important to lobby Congress so that our representatives understand where we are coming from as a labor organization and as a social organization.”

David Parsons traveled to nation’s capital from Washington State and was excited to meet with representatives on the Hill.

“It’s great to be a constituent from across the country, come to D.C. and be welcomed,” said Parsons of UAW Local 4121. “We met with several of our congressional representatives, including a member of Congress from Washington State. There were lots of positive responses across the board on a number of key issues.”

David Strickland of UAW Local 862 in Louisville, Ky., also met with representatives from his state, which recently re-elected Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell and voted in freshman Tea Party Senate candidate Rand Paul. “It’s a good experience, [but only] if you have representatives who are friends of labor,” Strickland said.

Paul didn’t make himself available, but Strickland and Local 862 President Rocky Comito didn’t shy away from meeting with the new senator’s representative.

“It went about as expected,” Comito said. “We just wanted to make a small visit to let them know we’re here. We’re going to be watching, and we’re going to be communicating with you all whether or not we get a message back.”

UAW activists from Regions 1C and 1D met with and encouraged Rep. Dale Kildee, D-Mich.’s 5th district, to endorse the union’s Principles for Fair Elections and to publicly support worker organizing efforts. A Flint native, Kildee reflected on how his life changed after the 1936-1937 General Motors’ Sit-down Strike.

“I know what the Kildee household was like when the UAW came in – it made a big difference,” the congressman said. “My mother thought Walter Reuther was a saint because he changed our quality of life.”

Here’s a recap:

Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO:

Trumka reminded delegates that elections have consequences and one from November was that anti-union governors and lawmakers are repaying their sponsors in the Chamber of Commerce and elsewhere by trying to dismantle public sector unions.

“This is no false alarm. This is no Chicken Little moment. This is a crisis,” he said. “Right-to-work (for less) in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio? Something is seriously wrong. You see, that’s our house.”

Mary Kay Henry, president of the SEIU:

Henry said coalition building across industries will be key to strengthening the collective bargaining and political power of labor. She noted that during the Flint Sit-Down Strike of 1937, workers were not alone in their struggle against General Motors. Labor campaigned and worked together in Michigan to elect then-Gov. Frank Murphy, an ally who helped protect the workers’ right to organize during the strike. “Are we prepared to think about each others’ fights in a way that really rebuilds a movement and creates a turnaround between now and the 2012 election?” she asked.

Larry Cohen, president of the Communications Workers of America:

Unions are under attack like never before, he told delegates. What’s troubling is that government and corporate leaders don’t seem to understand a simple concept in a consumer-driven economy: If workers do not earn enough to buy products, then your economy fails. Unions and collective bargaining play a huge part in keeping the economy stable. “Let us bargain again,” he said. “We’re not going to have a middle class if people can’t bargain with their employer and lift themselves up.”

Rep. George Miller, D-Calif.:

Miller said Republicans have worked every day to diminish unions and, therefore, the middle class. They fail to realize unions are fundamental to a strong middle class. And they will continue to attack the new health care law that will prevent families from compromising their homes and savings to cover the cost of health care. “This shouldn’t be an issue in America. Insurance should be there, coverage should be there,” said Miller. “If we are going to build the middle class, we have to have affordable insurance.”

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi:

Leverage shifted to working people in the first two years of the Obama administration, Pelosi, D-Calif., told delegates. That didn’t sit well with Big Pharma, the insurance industry and banks. So they spent a lot of money to defeat Democrats. Aided by the Supreme Court Citizens United decision that essentially lifted spending limits on campaigns, those interests won in November. “Any time you take the leverage away from the special interests, it’s a fight,” Pelosi said. “Are you up for the fight?” And she had a message for Chinese President Hu Jintao, who was staying at the same hotel as CAP delegates during his Washington visit with President Obama: “If you want to be our trading partner, you must play by the rules,” Pelosi said.

Radio/TV personality Ed Schultz:

Ed Schultz says he doesn’t know how to keep his mouth shut. That was welcome news for CAP delegates, especially when the fiery Schultz told them that the war on middle-class families has to stop. “We might not feel like it’s a war,” said the man known as “Big Eddie.” “We might not feel the confrontation, but it is a war. It’s an ideological fight for the country.”

Herman Jenkins
contributed to this article.