Discussions about how labor needs to stand with immigrant workers and against the criminalization of minorities were the highlights of Tuesday night’s DC COPE meeting and this month’s edition of the DC LaborFest’s Bread and Roses. At the COPE meeting at IATSE Local 22 in Northeast DC, workers and union activists agreed to stand together, to speak out, and to attend the Metro Council’s upcoming March 10 training on immigrant rights. A few miles away, more than 50 union members and community allies gathered at the Takoma Park Busboys and Poets to watch the new documentary “13th,” Ava DuVernay’s searing exploration of the "intersection of race, justice and mass incarceration in the United States." The DC COPE attendees also discussed dangerous changes to DC Workers Comp and regulating short term rentals (like AirBnB) so that workers and communities are not hurt, while the Bread and Roses audience considered ways to spread the word about “13th” and other powerful films.
photo: Walter Carroll (IBEW Local 26/DC APRI) makes a point at the DC COPE mtg (photo by Korey Hartwich)
photo: Walter Carroll (IBEW Local 26/DC APRI) makes a point at the DC COPE mtg (photo by Korey Hartwich)