Occupy Wall Street has captured the imagination and passion of millions of Americans who have lost hope that our nation’s policy makers are speaking for them. We support the protesters in their determination to hold Wall Street accountable and create good jobs.
From the AFL-CIO:
More than 800 Occupy Wall Street protests have sprung up across the nation, from Washington, D.C., to yes, Occupy Missoula (Mont.). While Republican Rep. Eric Cantor has called the protestors “mobs,” President Obama said yesterday the protests show a “broad-based frustration” among Americans about the U.S. financial system. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka is in New York City today to meet with Occupy Wall Street protestors. He’s a big reader, and so he first stopped by the ”library” at Occupy Wall Street (see video).
http://blog.aflcio.org/...
Trumka at OWS:
According to an NPR news report that I just heard, Mr. Trumka joined the protesters this afternoon.
Unions have their own activism planned for next week, and in some cases it will be demonstrating with local occupy movements.
From an AFL-CIO email:
Next week, we’re [the AFL-CIO] having a huge America Wants to Work national week of action—with a wide variety of activities, from vigils to protests outside job-outsourcing corporations to press events. In many places, we’ll be joining the Occupy Wall Street protests that have sprung up from Hawaii to Washington, D.C.
Go here for America Wants to Work actions in your area:
America Wants To Work
Here are a few of the many actions for next week:
The Washington State Labor Council and the King County Labor Council will join with the Occupy Wall Seattle—an offshoot of the Occupy Wall Street movement. In message to the protestors, labor leaders said:
Labor, youth, seniors, the poor, and immigrants — the 99 percent — must raise their voices and call the question on what type of society we want to live in. It is time for us to create an economy and a political system that is based on a concept of shared prosperity.
During the week of action, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) will co-host a forum in Las Vegas on jobs housing with the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
Says AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka:
Hundreds of thousands of people are standing up together by joining in this week of action and they will continue to call for passage of President Obama’s American Jobs Act and a just economy—and they’re not going away. They’ll be back and back and back until lawmakers finally listen. Every elected leader will be held accountable for creating the jobs we need and putting America back to work.
http://blog.aflcio.org/...
There is a coalition growing that is demanding jobs and an end to the Great Class Stratification.