Union City Radio for Wednesday, June 15

In the aftermath of the horrific attack in Orlando, staff at the AFL-CIO took a moment to come together Monday to read the names of those killed, followed by a moment of silence. “The latest count is 49 killed, plus 53 wounded, plus the impact on all of the families,” said AFL-CIO Chief of Staff John Hiatt. “Our first responders - police, fire, hospital workers - have been through their own trauma in handling the scene. Those killed were mostly young, Latino and LGBTQ, but this was an attack on all of us.” Many unions have issued statements of support.

On today’s labor calendar, with the first presidential election in 50 years without the full protections of the Voting Rights Act approaching this November, voters all over the country – especially people of color – are worried about voter suppression. Organizers and civil rights veterans will meet today at noon to analyze lessons learned from past fights for voting rights and chart a path forward at “We The People: Race and the New Fight for The Right to Vote” at the AFL-CIO.
And tonight at 6:30, catch a screening and panel discussion around the film “The  Same Heart,” which documents how global inequality fuels child labor, generational cycles of poverty and egregious violations of fundamental human rights.
Both events are free; for complete details and the latest local labor calendar, go to dclabor.org and click on Calendar.

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1990, police in Los Angeles attacked some 500 janitors and their supporters during a peaceful demonstration against a cleaning contractor. The event, which became known as the “Battle of Century City,” generated public outrage and resulted in recognition of the workers' union – the Service Employees International Union -- and spurred the creation of an annual June 15 Justice for Janitors Day.

Today’s labor quote is by one of the striking janitors in Los Angeles in 1990, who told a reporter:
“I wasn’t robbing a bank or selling drugs, I’m simply asking for an increase in pay but the police beat us as if we were garbage.”