Carry on Dr. King’s legacy this Labor
Day by marching for farmworker justice! This weekend, don’t forget tell Publix that it’s time to join the Fair Food Program! Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, a march that has rightly gone down in history as one of the greatest actions for social justice of the 20th century. Much was written about the march over the past several days (one excellent piece from the New York Times on the “Lasting Power of Dr. King’s Dream Speech” really is a must read), including many reflections on how far the country has come, or has left to go, in the area of racial justice. But lost in much of the coverage was the fact that the massive gathering in Washington was called the “March for Jobs and Justice,” and the marchers’ demand for economic justice was every bit as urgent as their call for racial equality. And while there is an argument to be made that we as a nation have made progress — incomplete as it may be — on racial injustice since the time of Jim Crow, it is much harder to make the case that we have made any significant economic progress — if any at all — since Dr. King told us about his dream. Wealth inequality is at an all time high, and more Americans live in poverty today, or teeter on the edge in a demoralizing state of insecurity, than ever before in the modern history of the country. So this weekend, what better way to celebrate Labor Day — and to honor the legacy of 1963′s March on Washington — than to return to the streets and demand economic justice for some of this country’s hardest working laborers, Florida’s farmworkers? What better way, indeed, than to join us for the big Labor Day Weekend of Action! Accordingly, we here in Immokalee kicked off the action bright and early Thursday morning in Venice at the opening of a brand new Publix — and we hope you can join the CIW women’s group and other allies at upcoming actions this weekend! |
This space is dedicated to the proposition that we need to know the history of the struggles on the left and of earlier progressive movements here and world-wide. If we can learn from the mistakes made in the past (as well as what went right) we can move forward in the future to create a more just and equitable society. We will be reviewing books, CDs, and movies we believe everyone needs to read, hear and look at as well as making commentary from time to time. Greg Green, site manager
Saturday, August 31, 2013
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