I’m standing here on the steps of the Indiana State Capitol with 35,000 Hoosier unionists and community allies to stop radical Republican state leaders from jamming through legislation to bust unions and weaken the power of working families and unions. The radical right and their Republican servants say these assaults are about balancing budgets.
They are lying. These assaults are to weaken workers and our unions.
They proved that last night in Wisconsin when the governor and Republican senators met in the dark and secretly and illegally to strip public employees of their right to union representation and collective bargaining.
But they have kicked a hornets’ nest and workers are fighting.
You can be proud of your union because President Langford is playing a leadership role nationally to mobilize the whole labor movement and we’ve had leaders and activists everywhere this fight has been engaged.
This is the most important fight of our lives. Despots and wannabe dictators always try to destroy unions so they can assume complete control. This fight is about our democracy and it is up to us to save our democracy and our nation’s future.
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This piece was originally posted at The Huffington Post
Written by Stewart Acuff, former organizing Director of the AFL-CIO, and current Chief of Staff at the Utility Workers Union of America
