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Lane Kirkland Center Dedicated at National Labor College |
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| Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley addresses the crowd at the dedication of the Lane Kirkland Center at the National Labor College. | |
More than 600 union leaders and members, elected officials and community leaders gathered today at the National Labor College (NLC) in Silver Spring, Md., to dedicate the Lane Kirkland Center, the cornerstone of a major expansion of the school.
Kirkland served as president of the AFL-CIO from 1979–1995. He died in 1999.
Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) praised Kirkland as “a force for progress that helped pave the way for greater opportunity and a greater role for the American worker.”
But he also brought a global vision based on an understanding that we are all in this together—that no matter where you live or work, we all share the same values and goals.
It was this timeless truth that defined “Solidarity,” his lifelong theme and earned him a coveted spot on President Nixon’s “enemies list.” It’s also the foundation we build on today as we look toward our own challenges and opportunities.
O’Malley was joined by members of the AFL-CIO General Board, who were meeting earlier on campus for the board’s annual meeting. The General Board is made up of the AFL-CIO’s three executive officers, 44 Executive Council members, the chief officer of each affiliated union, heads of the industrial and trade departments and four regional representatives of state federations.
AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, who also chairs the NLC’s Board of Trustees, reminded the audience that in 1963 when marchers joined Martin Luther King Jr., Bayard Rustin and A. Philip Randolph for the March on Washington, D.C., thousands of them pitched tents on what are now the Labor College grounds. He said Kirkland had the same passion for justice as those marchers.
When I imagine the night before the march, I see people gathered around campfires, each determined to do their part to bring justice to our nation in the morning. Imagine the hopes that were massing here with the marchers for the future of our country.
It was that same determination to bring justice to working people that propelled Lane Kirkland to lead the Solidarity Day march in 1981.
And it was that same determination that marked his life, a determination that transformed the lives of working people all over the world. He brought hope to the workers of Poland with the same conviction that he spoke out for justice here at home.
Sweeney also paid tribute to Kirkland’s wife, Irena, who died Jan. 24 and was instrumental in the building of the center. “Mrs. Kirkland was a strong partner for Lane Kirkland with a clear vision of freedom and democracy,” Sweeney said.
NLC President Susan Schurman says the Kirkland Center is a major part of the school’s expansion to provide greater educational opportunities to working families.
Union members and working families are hearing more about this college, and our enrollments are up. In the coming months and years, we intend to continue that effort to make the NLC the center of labor education.
Other speakers at the dedication included AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka, Executive Vice President Linda Chavez-Thompson, President Emeritus Tom Donahue and Ken Young, Kirkland’s longtime chief of staff.
The Kirkland Center contains 72,000 square feet of meeting and learning space. The center, which opened in October, is the culmination of a campuswide building and refurbishment campaign begun on the 47-acre campus in 2003. The expansion included new housing and classrooms.
The National Labor College offers bachelor’s degrees in various labor studies disciplines and, in partnership with the University of Baltimore, American University, the University of Massachusetts and Argosy University, offers graduate degrees in several areas such as public administration, legal and ethical studies, organizational development, union leadership and administration and instructional leadership.
About 100 students who represent unions across North America graduate from the Labor College each year.
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