Click on the headline to link to a Wikipedia entry for the San Francisco General Strike of 1934 as background for this post.
Markin comment:
As I mentioned in today's other posting concerning the proposal for a one day general strike in support of the Wisconsin public workers unions I am placing material in this space of others, individuals and organizations, who are committed to that same general proposition. That this trickling of support that has started comes out of San Francisco (although not from the well-known militant dockerworkers' unions yet), a historic area of labor militancy is telling. Forward!
Resolution of Letter Carriers Union Branch 214
Adopted unanimously March 2, 2011 in San Francisco, California
Support the Initiative for a General Strike in Wisconsin – and Prepare for Nationally-Coordinated Solidarity Job Actions
Whereas, Wisconsin governor Scott Walker’s Koch brothers-funded and Wall Street-inspired attempt to destroy Wisconsin’s public workers’ unions is the highly strategic opening battle in a war to destroy both the public and private sector of the U.S. labor movement; and
Whereas, resistance that the workers and students have mounted to the union-busting attack has in a short time breathed new life into the workers' movement in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan and across the country; and
Whereas, there must be no illusions about the determination of the
forces committed to crushing labor that are behind Gov. Walker, and
much more must be done if Wisconsin workers and all workers are to
prevail in this most critical battle facing working people in generations; and
Whereas, Gov. Scott Walker and the billionaires behind him must know in no uncertain terms that if they persist in their outrageous efforts to destroy the labor movement, that they will bring upon themselves the kind of massive, popular uprising of workers' power that this country hasn’t seen since the 1930s; and
Whereas, if the people of Egypt were ready to put their very lives on the line in their fight for freedom, then certainly the labor movement in the U.S. must be ready to demonstrate that it is prepared to put it all on the line in defense of the very elementary right of workers to have a union, and in defense of the right of the labor movement to survive; and
Whereas, the South Central Federation of Labor of Wisconsin (AFL-CIO) voted on Feb. 21, 2011 to “endorse a general strike” if the union busting bill is passed by the Wisconsin legislature and signed into law. The motion ordered that strike preparations begin immediately, asking the Education Committee to “immediately begin educating affiliates and members on the organization and function of a general strike.”
Therefore be it Resolved, that Golden Gate Branch 214 of the Letter Carriers Union calls upon organized labor everywhere and at every level to officially support the initiative of Wisconsin's South Central Federation of Labor to endorse a general strike if the union busting bill is passed; and
Be it further Resolved, that we call on organized labor to commit all
concrete solidarity support necessary to ensure the success of a general strike; and
Be it further Resolved, that we call on organized labor to approve, and prepare to initiate nationally-coordinated job actions in solidarity with a general strike in Wisconsin; and
Be it finally Resolved, that this resolution be submitted to Bay Area labor councils, California State Association of Letter Carriers, the NALC, and California Labor Federation, with which we are affiliated, for concurrence and action.
Resolution adopted unanimously 03/02/2011 in San Francisco, California, by the membership meeting of Golden Gate Branch 214 of the National Association of Letter Carriers, representing some 2,300 Postal Service letter carriers in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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Madison Area AFL CIO Votes to Prepare For General Strike
By Mike Elk, Feb. 22, 2011
This evening in a press release from IBEW Local 2304 President Dave Pokilinski, I received word that the 45,000 member Southern Central Federation of Labor, the local chapter of the AFL-CIO for the Madison and Southern Central Wisconsin area, has voted to make preparations for a general strike.
The press release reads as follows:
Around 10:50PM Wisconsin Time on February 21st the South Central Federation of Labor endorsed the following motions:
Motion 1: The SCFL endorses a general strike, possibly for the day [Governor Scott] Walker signs his “budget repair bill”, and requests the Education Committee immediately begin educating affiliates and members on the organization and function of a general strike.
Motion 2: The SCFL goes on record as opposing all provisions contained in Walker’s “budget repair bill”, including but not limited to, curtailed bargaining rights and reduced wages, benefits, pensions, funding for public education, changes to medical assistance programs, and politicization of state government agencies.
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