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2016 DC LABORFEST IS A WRAP!

​​The 2016 DC LaborFest and Labor FilmFest have wrapped up. Thanks to our Premiere Sponsors American Income Life, SAG-AFTRA, ATU, Working America, SEIU, IFPTE and NNU for their financial support.
 
Special thanks to all our wonderful volunteers who helped this year’s festival come off so smoothly despite being larger than ever.
 
Big shout-out to the good folks at WPFW 89.3 FM and Busboys & Poets who really stepped up their LaborFest game this year!
 
And of course thanks to everyone who came out and made the 2016 LaborFest our biggest and best yet.
 
We’ll be working on the 2017 edition soon; stay tuned for details!

​Labor FilmFest (AFI)

​Labor FilmFest (Other)

​MUSIC

​history & art tours

​POETRY & SOCCER

Bread & Roses:
UMWA’s Phil Smith
​on “Blood On The Mountain”

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The September 13 screening of “Blood On The Mountain” at the Takoma Busboys and Poets was introduced by Phil Smith, Director of Communications and Governmental Affairs at the United Mine Workers of America. Here are the notes from his remarks.

Thanks to Mari-Lynn Evans (the film’s director) and Chris Garlock (DC LaborFest director) for asking me to participate; I’m happy that folks are here to learn about the history of Appalachian coal mining.

It’s been a very hard road for miners – indeed all workers – in Appalachia for the last 150 years. Whether it’s timber, coal or other resources, Appalachia and especially West Virginia have a long history of absentee landowners taking the resources and profits out of the state and leaving little but the clean-up behind.

To some degree that changed with the strengthening of the UMWA in the 30s, 40s & 50s. Other unions took an active role as well. This film describes some of that. It is, in many respects, the best history of the very early days of labor militancy in West Virginia I have ever seen. Very well researched, the film breaks a lot of new historical ground.

But beyond the historical aspects in the film, there is fear in this film. To some degree, most people in Central Appalachia – where this film takes place – live with a certain degree of fear these days. The world is changing around them, and they don’t know what to expect. Some people are excited about a new way of looking at the Appalachian economy, basing it on something other than coal mining. But they fear their hopes may not come to pass to the level that is required. The truth is that without coal, the level of resources required to make families whole is immense – more than the United States has ever spent to revive local and regional economies. Many others don’t see a place for themselves in that new economy. They see the way of life their families have lived for generations coming to an end and it makes them fearful. They are losing jobs that pay $30+ per hour with benefits. They are instead having to take jobs that pay half that, with few or no benefits. And that’s if they are lucky. From that fear grows suspicion. You will see that in this film. From suspicion grows resentment. You will see that in this film. From resentment grown anger. You will see that in this film. From anger grows violence. You will see that in this film, too.

So we need to find a different way to talk to each other in Appalachia. Otherwise that fear, suspicion, anger and violence will keep simmering just below the surface of society, ready to erupt at any time. Finally, I have to say that mining coal provides a good living for our members and their families and allows their communities to prosper when there is demand for coal. When there is not, like right now, there is tremendous suffering for just about everyone living in the coalfields. We are seeing what happens when you pull coal out of the economic mix in Central Appalachia right now. And it isn’t pretty. Just saying coal is no good and must be stopped doesn’t take into account the human cost of doing that. We need to find solutions. Yes, our politicians need to step up. And they need to make sure that the retirees who put their lives and health on the line every day at work energizing this nation are not forgotten as well. This film talks about that a little. We have done much more in that regard since the film was shot. We still have a ways to go, but we have the support of many coalfield politicians, who are working very hard to help us. And we appreciate that. But if we don’t pass the legislation currently before Congress to protect retired coal miners’ health care and pensions, more than 16,000 people will lose their retiree health care in January. And then they will be forced to make cruel choices between getting the prescription drugs they need to stay alive or buy food. No one should be forced to make such choices in America.

​With that, I think you’ll find this film an opportunity to learn quite a bit about why things are as they are in West Virginia and other parts of Appalachia. Blood on the Mountain throws open a curtain to an important part of American history that has been suppressed for a long time. The history told here has been deliberately scrubbed from our children’s schoolbooks. The powers that be don’t want people to know this story, and up to now they have been successful. I’m glad you are here to learn it tonight.
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