United Workers

Baltimore Rallies for Fair Development from United Workers on Vimeo.

Last week’s Fair Development Rally, on April 20, was a huge success. Over 400 people came out. We had an amazing diversity of local musicians, performers, and speakers from across Baltimore. The unity of so many groups and issues under the banner of Fair Development was powerful.

Rich Armstrong, from Community Churches United, kicked the day off as the MC.

“What we’re here to do today is to let Caesars know, let the mayor know, and any other politician know, that we will not stand to be disrespected any more in Baltimore city,” he said.

The rally was held just a block from the site of Caesars’ future Horseshoe Casino. The Fair Development Campaign has been calling on the casino to hire locally, pay a living wage, and respect workers’ right to organize. An agreement for a fair process for unionization is expected any day between Caesars and UNITE HERE, which would be an important first step toward ensuring good jobs at the casino for Baltimore residents.

“This casino is going in – that’s clear!  Maryland voters voted for it last November. But they did so, in part, because of the promise of good jobs. Good, full-time jobs,” said Rev. Roger Powers, of Light Street Presbyterian, at the rally. “Our hope is that this project will be a showcase of what fair development looks like, and not just another example of development that fails our community.”

At the rally, hip-hop artists from Benjamin Franklin High School performed alongside low-wage workers who testified about Baltimore’s current development model.

“It’s not fair that we work on publically owned property, paid for by tax dollars, our tax dollars, but we are paid barely above minimum wage,” said Yaseen Abdul-Malik, a restaurant employee at BWI airport. “Our employers benefit from massive public assistance, assistance that comes off of our pay checks and off of our backs, but what is the benefit to our community?”

The rally closed with a lively street theatre performance with singing and people-size playing cards, made by members of the campaign. The crowd then marched to McKeldin Square, in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, where city and state officials have handed over more than $2 billion in subsidies and tax breaks to big developers since the 1970s, while workers are left struggling to survive in low-wage and temporary jobs. This is failed development.

Instead, we demand Fair Development, which produces living wage jobs and protects the workers’ right to organize. Development should prioritize communities most in need and provide public benefits and community resources. It should be transparent, accountable, and Baltimore residents need to be an active part of decisions made about their communities. Is this too much to ask? We don’t think so, and a movement is growing across the city to make it happen. The April 20 Fair Development Rally was the first joint action of the Fair Development Campaign, a collaboration between UNITE HERE, United Workers, and Community Churches United, that has been endorsed by AFSCME, IATSE, the NAACP, Interfaith Worker Justice, the Presbytery of Baltimore, and several other community groups.

If you missed the rally, you can still catch most of it here. By following the links in this article, you can check out longer testimony. Here are some links to the media coverage. A short video on the day is available above, two Flickr photosets are available here and here, and you can check out the complete audio from the stage here:

On April 20, the United Workers Action Team and many other people and groups put on this Fair Development Play, with people-sized playing cards, at the Rally for Fair Development in Baltimore city. Filmed and edited by the United Workers Media Team. For more on the Fair Development Campaign, visit Facebook.com/FairDevelopment

Double Impact, from Ben Franklin High School, performed at our Fair Development Rally on April 20th. Below is a short clip.

Double Impact at the Fair Development Rally from United Workers on Vimeo.

The Fair Development Rally, the first action of the new Fair Development Campaign, was a huge success. Thanks to everyone that made it out! Together with UNITE HERE Local 7 and Community Churches United, we rallied with signs and banners, produced by local high school students and Fair Development Campaign members. Amazing local musicians performed alongside speakers. The crowd of over 400 then marched to McKeldin Square. Below are two Flickr slideshows of pictures taken by our media team at the event. The first includes pictures from the rally, the second is of pictures from the march to the Inner Harbor. Stay tuned for more media and a longer recap. Also, don’t forget to check us out at Twitter @unitedworkers and Facebook.com/unitedworkers and Facebook.com/FairDevelopment for more on the day.

On February 27, we attended a community event held by Community Churches United, a close ally and member of the Fair Development Campaign, where, among many things, we are fighting for good union jobs for Baltimore residents (currently city residents make up less than 3% of the workforce on many development projects across the city). The event was held at Simmons Memorial Baptist Church in Baltimore. Pastor Duane Simmons kicked it off with a powerful call to organize from below.

“Now is the time where change has to come from the bottom to the top,” said Pastor Simmons. “And when we get the bottom together, guess what will happen to the top. The top ain’t listening. The top is so capitalistic  and everyone is always so capitalistic minded to see what they can line their pockets with. They don’t care about you. Make them care!”

“We’re gonna make city hall listen. We’re gonna make Annapolis listen. We’re gonna make Washington listen. Right here. This grassroots movement,” said Pastor Simmons. A clip from his speech is below, filmed and edited by the United Workers media team.

We had a great Leadership Retreat last weekend! We strategized, did workshops on economic inequality and the fiancialization of the economy, and planned for upcoming actions, including the April 20 Fair Development March (unitedworkers.org/2013/03/15/fair-development-march-april) and a fall action for the Health Care Is a Human Right campaign. We also roasted marshmallows. Thanks to everyone who came out! A slideshow of pictures from the weekend is below.

The retreat came on the heels of our Leadership Day, held on February 24. During the day, United Workers members elected the newest members of the Leadership Council, the governing body of the United Workers. After the election we held a dialogue with community members about the fight to keep the rec centers and fire stations open and the larger struggle for Fair Development. It was the last meeting at our old offices on Hollins Street.

The United Workers understands that to build a strong movement for human rights and an end to poverty requires at its foundation the development of powerful leaders. As we near our big 10th Year Anniversary Celebration this Saturday, December 1, we are publishing a series of blog posts from United Workers leaders, with their stories of personal transformation and memories of important moments in United Workers’ past. The 10^th Anniversary Celebration will take place on Saturday, December 1, 3-6pm at James McHenry Recreation Center (911 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223). To purchase tickets email us at info@unitedworkers.org or go to http://unitedworkers10th.eventbrite.com/#

By Keith Brown

Former workers and their allies protest the ESPN Zone closing in 2010

I worked at ESPN Zone in the Inner Harbor for six years. I was a busser, a line cook, and a prep cook. It was OK, but I like working around the people more than the job. It was the only thing that had you coming back—the community.

Then, in June 2010, we found out from the news that ESPN Zone was closing. They didn’t give us any notice and we were all surprised. It was the first time that I saw people break down on the job ‘cause they didn’t know how they were gonna pay for their child care or school and things they needed to survive.

Right around that time, United Workers members were there with surveys asking harbor workers about their jobs. They heard about the ESPN Zone closing and quickly helped us get organized. They also helped us protest the closure and file a lawsuit against Disney, ESPN Zone’s parent company, which had violated the WARN Act by closing without any notice and with inadequate severance packages. I stuck around cause I liked the work and because I made a lot of friends.

With United Workers I’ve learned about a lot of things. How people are being treated like slaves—the tomato pickers, for instance, in Florida—with low wages and horrible working conditions. With United Workers I’ve traveled to NYC and Philly. We went to meet with folks from the Poverty Initiative and the Media Mobilizing Project. I learned that they had the same problems in NYC and in Philly.

Keith Brown at the 2011 Human Rights Dinner

My most memorable moment was the United Workers human rights dinner in 2011. We were sitting in a circle and it was time for the award part of the ceremony and then they called my name. I didn’t know why they called my name. And Michael Coleman handed me this award for championing human rights and I had to give a speech. I told them I really didn’t deserve it and that I’d try to live up to it. It was a total surprise.

With United Workers, I have begun to see the city in a different light. I have learned how the developers really operate. How they just want their money. And how the city has been supporting these developers with subsidies at the same time as it is cutting funds from public services—libraries, rec centers, fire stations. Since earlier this year I’ve been a member of United Workers’ West Side Committee. It’s a hard-working great bunch of people, and we have been fighting to keep the fire stations and rec centers open.

After collecting petitions and doing several rallies, we were able to convince the mayor to reverse her decision to close the Truck 10 firehouse. The mayor magically found the money to keep Truck 10 open for another year. It was a great victory, but it also shows you the power of the mayor and the city. She says to close the fire stations and rec centers and gives the developers the go ahead to do whatever they want and that’s not fair. We need fair development, with community participation and real accountability. That’s why we will continue to keep fighting, and that’s why it’s important for you to get in contact and unite with United Workers.

Baltimore’s former ESPN Zone workers are back in court this Friday for the latest hearing in their case against Disney.

The United Workers understands that to build a strong movement for human rights and an end to poverty requires at its foundation the development of powerful leaders. As we near our big 10th Year Anniversary Celebration on December 1, we will be publishing a series of blog posts from United Workers leaders, with their stories of personal transformation and memories of important moments in United Workers’ past. The 10^th Anniversary Celebration will take place on Saturday, December 1, 3-6pm at James McHenry Recreation Center (911 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223). To purchase tickets email us at info@unitedworkers.org or go to http://unitedworkers10th.eventbrite.com/#

By Doreen Hicks

Doreen Hicks marches with Harriet Tubman puppet for Our Harbor Day.

I started with the United Workers in 2007. I worked down at the Camden Yards stadium after they had won the campaign for a living wage. I was invited to an event and it was fun, so I started getting involved. I’m a participatory kind of a person, so whenever they had an event I would help with whatever needed to get done. I like the United Workers message. I love the people. I like the type of work that’s being done and the fact that you gotta fight for it. I like to fight for a good cause.

My most memorable moment at United Workers was when I played Harriet Tubman as a puppet for Our Harbor Day in May 2010 (see image). Our goal was to inform people that they need to rise up and do something about the issues affecting them and their city. We know education is being railroaded into jail cells, industry is being taken out of Maryland, and that the city has replaced factory jobs and solid careers with seasonal jobs and poverty wages. Our money is being used in ways that we don’t even know. All of these atrocities are coming our way and we don’t even realize that we need to stand up for ourselves. We need to fight for our rights, our human rights, our dignity, our respect, our education, our jobs, and our living wages. We need to fight for those things, and that’s what United Workers is doing.

That was our point on Our Harbor Day. We held four different plays about different issues across the city, and the final play was about Harriet Tubman. In the play she told everyone that we were all leaders. But she wasn’t the leader of the march, the people that worked at the Inner harbor were. They led, next came Harriet Tubman, and everyone else was behind us, and we marched from City Hall to the Inner Harbor.

I’ll remember that day for the rest of my life. Harriet Tubman is an important symbol and the work that she did was so immense. I felt honored to be chosen to represent her. But the puppet was so huge it took a while to figure out how the heck I was going to wear the costume. Plus, with the heat of the day, it was 100 degrees in that thing, and at the end of the march I got dizzy and disoriented, and somebody else had to take over for me. But the experience was amazing.

Other people should get involved with United Workers, because it’s a great organization. It benefits a lot of people, because United Workers’ struggles cross boarders and encompass all races, all genders, and all creeds. In spite of the hard work; in spite of the blood, sweat, and tears, it’s all worth it. It’s for the people.

Our Harbor Day march to the Inner Harbor

There is more to come, but here’s a teaser to wet your palate. Check back in for a longer video report from Saturday’s action.

This weekends actions were larger than life, literally. From a blown up demand letter to large scale projected animations, this past weekend was one of the most interactive, art filled and BIGGEST expressions of Occupy the Malls to date. As we gear up for the March to Occupy GGP on May 19th, the United Workers Action Team, a group of low-wage workers, artists, and activists have been designing creative tactics for getting the message out about the human rights abuses at the Inner Harbor and General Growth Properties steadfast refusal to acknowledge workers demands.

On Friday as tourists and harbor goers enjoyed a lovely Spring evening, an unusual thing happened. A light was cast on the Inner Harbor, exposing the reality of poverty-zone development on Baltimore. Greenpants, a Baltimore based group of artist, activists, and educators, came up with a brilliant idea to project an animation on the exterior of the mall that told the story of workers fight for work with dignity and fair development at the Inner Harbor. This mesmerizing projection was a perfect example of public art being used to open up space for conversations about development, poverty, and human rights.

The very next day, the Action Team unveiled a blown-up version of harbor workers demand letter (the one we’ve been dropping off at GGP malls across the country). Who knows, maybe GGP hasn’t responded to our letter because they couldn’t read the small font. But instead of bringing this letter to GGP, once again, we decided to instead bring it to the people. One by one, harbor visitors gravitated to the giant yellow letter and once learning of the abuses at the harbor they added their signature to the call for workers demands to a right to work with dignity, healthcare and education.

After several hours of educating consumers and gathering signatures, we walked up several blocks to the plaza outside the offices of the Baltimore Development Corporation (BDC) to join the Spring Development Forum. Organized by Another BDC is Possible, the Spring Development Forum was right up our alley. Leaders from across the city, working on a variety of social and economic justice issues, from worker’s rights to juvenile justice reform, came out to discuss how our current model of economic development benefits only a few and share how we can create a new model of economic development that truly benefits all.

This weekends actions proved once again that the message of Fair Development resonates with people from all walks of life. As we prepare for the March to Occupy GGP, we’re calling on all those who believe in the tenants of Fair Development, respect for human rights, public benefits over private gain, and sustainability, join us in this major action on May 19th.

Below is audio for most of the Fair Development Conference Workshops. To read descriptions about the different workshops click here. To download any of the audio files in MP3 format click here.

Fair Development Conference: Block 1

Fair Development Conference: Block 2

Fair Development Conference: Block 3

Fair Development Conference: Block 4

Throughout the Fair Development Conference, participants, panelists and United Workers’ members were asked what Fair Development means to them. A few of those interviews can be seen below, building, expanding and collectively envisioning how Fair Development both stands in opposition to poverty zone development like that of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and extends to struggles across the country for land, healthcare, housing, love and dignity; or in short, people’s basic human rights.

Wow! What a powerful weekend. From Brazil to Detroit, more than 400 social movement activists and grassroots organizers participated in the Fair Development Conference to connect local struggles to a growing global movement for economic human rights and justice. Participants converged in Baltimore to take part in discussions, workshops and actions to build solidarity across issues of social, economic and environmental justice ranging from universal healthcare to anti-war organizing, all under the banner of “fair development for everyone.”

Check out the website for videos and photos posted over the course of the weekend

It was truly an inspiring event, from beginning to end. From the first night where we started by sharing a meal together to build community and listen to six commanding and clear keynote speakers set the tone and call to action for the collective task of building a global movement to end poverty for all.

Videos of the speeches are forthcoming.

On Saturday, over 40 grassroots, cultural, community, and labor leaders and groups presented in 24 workshops to exchange strategies and solutions for building power to put forward alternative visions of economic development based on fair development principles of respecting human rights, maximizing public benefits, and sustainability. The Fair Development Conference created a space for in-depth dialogue on how to stop private corporations and banks from reaping unprecedented profits as the economic crisis continues to ravage communities across the globe.

In a workshop entitled, “Resource Grabs,” we heard from Adam Hall of the Keeper of the Mountains Foundation discuss the devastating effects that mountain top removal has had on the level of poverty and health of communities in West Virginia, including his family farm that had extended back generations and generations. The Vermont Workers Center shared insights into what led to their successful Healthcare is a Human Right Campaign. Marisela Gomez, former director of the Save Middle East Action Committee (SMEAC), gave a thorough presentation on the history of Johns Hopkins controversial redevelopment of East Baltimore that led to unprecedented displacement of residents.

If you came to the Fair Development Conference and just couldn’t go to every workshop you were interested in or if you just missed the conference, have no fear. Our amazing internal media team audio recorded just about every session. We will be posting all these soon, so be on the lookout.

Baltimore is a great example of how development affects ordinary people’s lives and on Sunday, we focused our attention on one of those examples, the Inner Harbor. Over 150 harbor workers, grassroots allies, and community members gathered for the “Haunted Harbor March.” See photos and from this playful and dramatic action.

After two days of amazing conversations, presentations, and workshops with social movement activists and organizers from all over the country and the globe, we closed the Fair Development Conference by taking that energy and spirit to the Inner Harbor.

On the eve of Halloween, harbor workers, grassroots allies, conference goers, and community members gathered to take part in telling the story of, “The Haunted Harbor: A Terrifying Tale of Poverty-Zone Development.” Dressed as zombie developers, ghosts of “poverty wages” and “disrespect,” and the protagonists of this story, the “Poverty Busters,” we took to the harbor making stops along the way to perform our play and hear from harbor workers and grassroots allies from the Baltimore Algebra Project, Occupy Baltimore, Coalition of Immokalee Workers, the Keeper of the Mountains Foundation, Vermont Workers Center, Media Mobilizing Project, and the Poverty Initiative.

It was an incredible action, but the most powerful moment came when after three years of being denied access to march through our harbor, we took the promenade along the Inner Harbor in full view of workers and consumers. We stopped in the ampitheater in the center of Harborplace to tell the real story of the harbor, the story that is hidden, made invisible, but that workers know all too well. As Raquel Rojas, former Cheesecake Factory cook, recounted the wage theft and sexual harassment she experienced and witnessed, workers congregated on the balconies and at doorways to hear her story. Emboldened by our actions, we marched to the Cheesecake Factory where we stopped and chanted so all could hear our demands for worker dignity.

As we came to our final stop at the former location of the ESPN Zone and the new location of Phillips Seafood, one of the worst human rights violators in the harbor, it was a bittersweet moment. It was a bittersweet moment, because in the tale we performed, we as “Poverty Busters” had zapped the human rights abuses out of this dimension, freeing the harbor from the ghosts of poverty-zone development. But as we emerged from our playful fantasy, we knew the human rights abuses still existed and the harbor had yet to be transformed into a Human Rights Zone. We know that the road to Fair Development is long and has and will continue to require commitment, leadership and effective grassroots organizing to release the heart of our city from the shackles of poverty-zone development. It was also a bittersweet moment because the Fair Development Conference had officially come to an end and it was time to say good-bye to friends both new and old. We had shared and learned so much over the course of the weekend, we were inspired by the many stories of struggle and victory, reaffirming our collective commitment to building a united movement to create a just and equitable world for all.

The many pieces of fabric that made up the quilt of a collective vision of Fair Development were constructed throughout the day in the many workshops, conversations, meals shared and stories swapped. The intricacies of Fair Development became more defined as people elaborated on the three concepts of maximizing public benefits, respect for human rights and sustainability.

The Fair Development Photo Booth was one of the many places host to dozens of participants to express their vision for Fair Development. It quickly turned into a space for breaking down barriers of age and language where all could communicate a desire for a hopeful future. Check the photos out here:

While some expressed their sentiments on cardboard, still others conducted a series of short interviews. Check them out!

Finally, be sure to take a peruse through the many photos that captured the over twenty-five different workshops:

In preparation for participants to arrive to St. Johns Church to hear the Keynote speakers, the United Workers takes a moment to come together in a Unity Circle to express love, gratitude and leadership for each other and all those that will join them today.

Pick up this week’s Baltimore City Paper or go online to read their article on the United Workers upcoming Fair Development Conference. In other news, the United Workers appeared on the Marc Steiner show with the Marian Kramer of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization and Sarah Weintraub of the Vermont Worker Center. The two media pieces draw connections between Fair Development, the Occupy Movements and the nature of a system built on poverty and poverty-zone development. If you missed the Steiner show you can have a listen here.

Here’s an excerpt from the City Paper article:

From February’s labor protests in Wisconsin to the 99 percenters currently camping out in New York’s Zuccotti Park, populist protest is suddenly all the rage. But movements for social change are nothing new. Take, for example, the United Workers, a Baltimore-based coalition of low-wage workers formed in 2002. In 2007, the United Workers lobbied for “living wages” at Camden Yards—and got them. Since then, the group has been campaigning on behalf of workers at the Inner Harbor, trying to institutionalize rights to health care and education.

To raise awareness of these efforts, the group has a history of putting on political events that go beyond the strictly political. In the past, that has resulted in street-side theatrical performances, a community fair, and, in true activist tradition, plenty of marches. This weekend, Oct. 28-30, UW hosts the Fair Development Conference, a gathering of grassroots organizations, political activists, community organizers, and other interested parties from as far as Brazil and as near as Baltimore . . .

The workshops, lectures, and presentations planned for the conference will take on much more than just the struggle for the soul of the harbor. And although fair development is the organizing principle behind the conference, the topic is interpreted broadly enough to include discussions on universal health care, permaculture design, and lessons drawn from the 19th-century movement to abolish slavery. One workshop will explore Johns Hopkins Hospital’s fraught relationship with the Middle East neighborhood, where it displaced hundreds of residents to build a controversial—and moribund—biotech park; another will spotlight worker-led organizations that have successfully lobbied for Taco Bell, Whole Foods, and other food-industry giants to raise wages for the people who pick their tomatoes.

To read the full article, go to http://citypaper.com

If work just ain’t fair
at the Harborplace
Who ya gonna call?
POVERTY BUSTERS!..

That’s right! For decades, the Inner Harbor has been haunted by labor and human rights abuses including: poverty wages, disrespect, sexual harassment, lack of healthcare, denying education opportunities, wage theft, unsafe work environments, and general exploitation for the sake of profit.

That’s why, Harbor workers, members and community artists have been preparing for a battle between between the “Poverty Busters” and the ghouls and goblins of Poverty-zone Development. On final day of the Fair Development Conference, Sunday, October 30^th, United Workers will lead a march from the Baltimore Development Corporation down to the Inner Harbor featuring “Poverty Busters” lighting up their proton packs and blasting these abuses out of this dimension, replacing them with our shared fair development principles of Human Rights, Sustainability, and maximizing public benefits.  During the march, harbor workers and community leaders from throughout the country will share how our struggles are connected and demonstrate that we have the strength and community power to save our Harbor from these monstrous abuses!

The march will feature participants from the Fair Development Conference, Harbor Workers, and allies from throughout the city and will feature Baltimore’s own Barrage Band Orchestra!

Check out the flickr photoset to see a preview of the Haunted Harbor in the making.

ACTION DETAILS

What: The Haunted Harbor March! A Terrifying Tale of Poverty Zone Development

When: Sun October 30^th 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Where: Gather at Charles St. & Lombard St.