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Getting off the Couch and Taking [Political] Action: Union Members Tell Their Stories |
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Carla Bryson
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Scott Jorgensen
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Don Dawson
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Keith Strobelt
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Like most of us, Carla Bryson says she caught herself more and more often yelling at the TV as reporters described the nation’s deteriorating health care, loss of jobs and more. But Bryson, a member of Electrical Workers Local 2327, did something about it—going from frustrated viewer to political activist to campaign treasurer for the re-election of the very pro-union Gov. John Baldacci (D-Maine).
This is why, she says, union members should get involved in politics:
It’s self-interest, especially for people who have children. We need to think and not only about ourselves but what kind of country are we going to have for them. When we’re in a union, we want to stay employed and keep our benefits, and sometimes we need to do something to help. That’s why politics is important. It’s sort of an adjunct to union activity.
Bryson is one of thousands of union members on the front lines of this fall’s get-out-the-vote effort and among several grassroots activists profiled at the AFL-CIO political action center, http://www.votenov7.org/.
In Colorado, Scott Jorgenson is wearing two activist hats. The Sheet Metal Workers Local 9 member is knocking on other union members’ doors in Labor 2006 member-to-member walks. In addition, he puts on his Working America hat to canvass the entire community for the AFL-CIO’s community affiliate for people who don’t have a union. Says the 26-year-old Jorgenson:
On both of those, we’re talking about keeping jobs in the state, strengthening health care and education, raising the minimum wage, issues like that. When you talk to the people who have been in unions for 30 years, they’re really glad to see young people stepping up and keeping unions alive and when I go out there for Working America, they brighten up a little when I say that I’m not asking them for their vote but that we’re here to hold politicians accountable.
Don Dawson got his first taste of political activism in the 2004 presidential election. The Communications Workers of America Local 7102 member took on the task of running his local union’s political program in Des Moines, Iowa, signing up 250 new members and raising more than $30,000. Then he really went to work—taking two months off from his job to work full-time for the election.
We knocked on doors, we did phone calling several times, we leafleted workplaces and handed out fliers to our members as they went in to work. I believe that every contact you make with a member is going to help get their vote.
While a new baby in his household means he’s cut back a little this year, Dawson still is phone banking and going door to door to talk with union members whenever he can.
In Ohio, USW International Union member Keith Strobelt also is putting in lots of extra time and effort for the Nov. 7 elections. The chairman of the USW Local 1123’s Rapid Response committee, Strobelt is educating his co-workers about vital working family issues and mobilizing them for a big turnout. Says Strobelt:
It’s not politics as usual this year. We have a unique opportunity to turn this state around and put it back in the hands of working people—where it belongs.
After you read their full stories, check out the AFL-CIO political action center, http://www.votenov7.org/, where you can register to vote, learn about working family issues and download candidate comparison fliers. If you’re a union member, sign up to volunteer to get out the vote. If you’re not a union member, join the AFL-CIO community affiliate Working America and join the fight for good jobs, affordable health care, quality education and secure retirements.
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