It all started with a simple handshake. Georgetown University student Febin Bellamy was getting ready for another late night of studying. Janitor Oneil Batchelor was starting his night shift. It was the usual routine, Batchelor would come in to clean the classroom and Bellamy would study. On this particular night, however, the two young men started talking. Batchelor's dream of starting his own catering business was something that Bellamy, a business student and a former service worker himself, could relate to. Before returning to their routine, the two exchanged a handshake. Bellamy shared Batchelor’s story on his Facebook page and within weeks, students across campus raised $2,500 to help jumpstart Batchelor’s catering business. Bellamy got to know more Georgetown service workers -- many of them members of Unite Here Local 23 who work in the school's cafeterias -- and, inspired by their stories and dreams, he created Unsung Heroes, a nonprofit organization that focuses on promoting awareness and appreciation for workers on college campuses and works to “make visible the Invisibles.” Recent profiles on the Unsung Heroes Facebook page include Cheung Gunho, who works in Georgetown's Leo O'Donovan Dining Hall, Georgetown bus driver Alvaro Barberena, and Dorothy Lewis, a facilities worker at Georgetown University Medical Center. To read their stories, click on the link to the Unsung Heroes Facebook page on our website at dclabor.org
Here’s today's labor history, On this date in 1918, textile mill owners in India locked out their workers over a cost-of-living wage dispute. Indian independence leader Mohandas K. Gandhi proposed a compromise and began his first “fast unto death,” which lasted for four days until the mill owners agreed to arbitration. Today’s labor quote is by Mohandas K. Gandhi, now known as Mahatma Gandhi, who said "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus. UnionPlus is committed to improving the quality of life of working families through their unique products and services. Find out more at unionplus.org.
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