SEIU 775 President David Rolf made the following statement regarding the situation in #Ferguson: Far from Washington and Montana, in Ferguson, MO, a family and community has been rocked by the tragic death of Michael Brown by a police officer, and the ensuing police crackdown. Though it is far away, SEIU 775 members – many of who are people of color, immigrants, or LGBTQ – feel this pain in our hearts. SEIU 775 fights for justice every day. We are fighting to lift home care workers out of poverty, to increase the minimum wage for all workers, and to improve social justice for all. We demand that all workers must feel equally safe to stand up in the workplace or to stand up for justice freely and openly in the streets. We should not fear that our sons and daughters or those of our neighbors will be killed or jailed because of the color of their skin. In this spirit, we must continue to stand strong as a union and speak out for broad-based equality for all of our sisters and brothers. We are not immune from oppression here in Washington and Montana. Police have beaten and even killed innocent people of color. Immigrants are denied justice and a chance at the American Dream. Workers nationwide are denied the fundamental right to support themselves and afford the basics while toiling for giant multi-national corporations with billionaire CEOs. What happens when people are denied their basic humanity by CEOs, politicians, and police? They rise up, like in Ferguson this week, shaking our collective conscience by demanding the most basic recognition that our lives matter. When we say we stand with Ferguson, we are again saying we stand together in strength. The fight for justice for Michael Brown is our fight. SEIU President Mary Kay Henry said, “We are encouraged that the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI are intervening with an eye toward easing tensions, guaranteeing civil rights and protecting and serving that community and its residents. On behalf of the 2 million members of the Service Employees International Union, we extend thoughts and prayers to the family of Michael Brown. May all parties involved in this tragedy find justice and peace.” Today, on behalf of the 43,000 members of SEIU 775, we echo Mary Kay Henry’s words, and we recommit ourselves in the struggle for racial justice.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 22:32:24 +0000
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