Strike for Black Lives could spark walkoff
Coalition action was set Monday in 160 cities
Workers protested across the USA on Monday, going on strike, walking off the job and marching on city hall to demand an end to systemic racism in the workplace and their communities.
The Strike for Black Lives, organized by a coalition of unions, social justice and civil rights groups, was set to take place in an 160 cities, including New York, San Francisco and St. Louis, linking the fight against police brutality to a broader call for racial equity.
Planned actions included daylong strikes by fast-food workers to nursing home aides, custodians and others walking off the job at midday for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the length of time a white Minneapolis police officer pinned down George Floyd, whose death led to a nationwide movement to protest police killings of African American men and women.
It was not immediately clear how many people participated Monday, but organizers said they expected thousands of workers, from Uber drivers to farmworkers, to take part.
The Strike for Black Lives calls on companies to increase pay, offer benefits such as paid sick leave and allow workers to unionize as part of a broader effort to root out bias that hinders the ability of Black people to achieve economic and social equity.
In New York City, Sen. Chuck Schumer addressed more than 150 protesters gathered in front of Trump Interna
“Until we have racial justice, we cannot have economic, climate or immigrant justice.”
Kyle Bragg, president of 32BJ
tional Hotel demanding better protections and benefits for essential workers.
“Today, we’re here to demand from those in power, including the man whose name adorns the building, that it’s time to dismantle white supremacy and combat police brutality,” said Kyle Bragg, president of 32BJ, a union representing more than 170,000 office janitors, security workers and doormen on the East Coast, according to The Associated Press.
“Until we have racial justice, we cannot have economic, climate or immigrant justice,” Bragg said.
Organizers said 1,500 janitors in San Francisco went on strike Monday and will rally at City Hall. In Chicago, fastfood workers planned to call for better pay and benefits by marching and riding in a car caravan.
“With the Strike for Black Lives, we are uniting the interconnected fights for racial and economic justice,” Mary Kay Henry, president of the Service Employees International Union, said. “Workers from across the country are coming together because we can no longer ignore the deadly impacts of structural racism in America’s economy, especially in the
middle of a pandemic that is devastating communities of color.”
A wide range of organizations and unions support the effort, including the SEIU, United Farm workers, the Fight for $15, MoveOn and the American Federation of Teachers.
Some organizers called out Walmart and McDonald’s, which they said express support for Black lives while exploiting
African American workers by paying low wages and offering few workplace protections or benefits.
Black employees at a McDonald’s in Lakeland, Florida, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Friday, saying they were subjected to a racist and toxic work environment, then retaliation, such as reduced hours and grueling tasks, when they complained.
“We want to build a country where Black lives matter in every aspect of our society, including our workplaces,” AshLee Woodard Henderson, a representative of the Movement for Black Lives, said. “These same companies whose profits are made from the exploitation of Black workers have not changed their policies.”
McDonald’s USA said, “We stand with Black communities across the globe in our commitment to address unacceptable racial injustices and are disappointed that these allegations do not reflect the high standards we hold ourselves accountable to every day across all areas of our business. We take these claims seriously and will review the complaint once it has been filed and take actions accordingly.”
The company said it and its franchisees have given employees protective equipment and “the vast majority” of workers have sick pay if they are affected by COVID-19.
This week’s walkout is just the beginning, some protesters said.
“We’re risking our lives going to work and still getting paid the same poverty wages,” said Adriana Alvarez, a Fight for $15 leader.
“As far as I know (the strike’s) for today,” she said. “But if it goes longer, it goes longer. Whatever it takes.”