The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) will be leading the charge to reclaim May Day as a collective day of action where we, the people, remember that change is possible when we stand together.
I propose that we, the people, join the ILWU on May 1 and show our government that we will not tolerate this illegal war and the obliteration of our economy for narrow interests that profit from us every time we fill up at the pump.
The ILWU has announced that its members will strike for a portion of May 1st to protest the ongoing, illegal war in Iraq. Other Local Unions such as the the New York Area Postal Workers Union of the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) and the San Francisco and Greensboro, NC branches of the National Association of Letter Carriers along with the New York American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1021 have voted to honor the ILWU call to action with job actions. http://www.socialistworker.org/...
So, where is the call to action to the millions of Americans who know that we are pursuing an immoral and illegal war on behalf of narrow corporate geopolitical interests? Thousands of young soldiers have been been sent to their death and tens of thousands will come back permanently scarred and for what? Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians have been killed since this war began. Will we ever be able to explain what is to become of the generation of Iraqi children who have missed out their basic rights to their childhood (security, education, dreams of a future?)
Does anyone wonder why Exxon can so obscenely profit (we'll see how much ironically on Thursday May 1 at 10:00 a.m. http://phx.corporate-ir.net/... while every working person suffers under ever increasing gas prices exacerbated by rising commodity prices. Our government can't find tax dollars for retooling and employing our own workers in the former industrial centers of our country in order to develop mass transportation but, will readily cut checks for billions to the PRIVATE military/security industrial complex. Our tax dollars redistributed UPWARD! Please read Naomi Klein "The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism" for more information.
So, faced with the wrecking of the U.S. economy along with the prosecution of an illegal and unjust war, why don't we, the common folk (the majority of us who are unrepresented by righteous organizations like the ILWU) join together and have a sick out on Thursday, May 1st? Literally, take the day off and call in sick. Even better, why don't we pack a cooler and lunch and park our cars on the expressways? We can leave the emergency lanes open for just that--emergencies. Shut 'em down for a day. Over a hundred years ago May Day began to honor common folk who fought in the United States for an eight hour day. Let's show them that we the people still demand that our government work toward the common good which right now means ending this war and refocusing on the needs of our people.