newjerseynewsroom.com

Over 3,100 turn out in wind and rain

BY TOM HESTER SR.

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

It was a sea of signs and umbrellas as over 3,100 union members and their supporters, some from other states, demonstrated outside the Statehouse in Trenton Friday in support of public employees in Wisconsin where the Republican governor wants to take away collective bargaining rights.

The protesters, many of them New Jersey public employees, also took the opportunity to criticize what they see as Gov. Christie’s anti-union outlook toward them with chants, songs and signs. One carried a sign that read: “Cut the fat from the budget, fire Christie.” Other placards proclaimed, “Recall Chris Christie,” “Stand up: Rally to Support New Jersey families and communities,” and Negotiate, Don’t Dictate.”

The demonstrators were sometimes buffeted with rain and wind.

Across West State Street from the Statehouse, a much smaller group of Tea Party members demonstrated in support of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. One person held a sign with a photo of President Obama with a Hitler mustache. When Wisconsin AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Stephanie Bloomingdale moved to address union demonstrators on the Statehouse, the Tea Party members tried to drown her out by singing “America the Beautiful.”

Barbara Keshishian, president of the New Jersey Education Association, the statewide teachers’ union, told the corwd that Christie is trying to divide the middle-class into a civil war.

“All of New Jersey’s middle-class is hurting, but this governor and his right-wing supporters are trying to start a middle-class civil war,” Keshishian said.

New Jersey AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech said the rally was an overwhelming show of solidarity for workers in Wisconsin.

“Standing shoulder to shoulder in solidarity with Wisconsin workers, we are sending a message to states across the nation that the attacks on working families and assaults on collective bargaining must end now,” New Jersey AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech told the crowd. “That is why thousands of union members and their families from New Jersey and states across the nation from every sector of the labor movement are here today.

“This is a defining moment for the labor movement and our middle class,” Wowkanech said. “We are one, we are united, and together we will fight for economic and social justice and our shared democratic values. We must send a strong message that union busting is not a budget solution and that we need to improve the quality of life for all workers – not dismantle it.

“The budget crises faced in states across the nation are not the fault of the hard working middle class people who build our buildings, care for the sick, teach our children, and fight the fires. Instead, we should focus our attention on the Wall Street bankers and corporate CEOs who melted down our economy and along with it many states pension funds and finances,” the labor leader said.

“By Governor Walker forcing a fight over basic workers’ rights, valuable time is being wasted that could have been dedicated to creating jobs and economic stability for the middle class,” Wowkanech concluded. “It is a shame that the politicians, who were elected to address the continuing jobs crisis, are using their new positions to engage in partisan battles and eliminate workers’ rights.”

The pro-labor rally was sponsored by the New Jersey AFL-CIO.

The non-profit NJ Environmental Federation issued a statement in support of unionized public employees.

"Professionals who work for the state of New Jersey implementing environmental laws that protect the state's natural resources, workers, and public health should be immune from political interference. Unfortunately that is not always the case,” the statement declared..

“In New Jersey and elsewhere, collective bargaining has been used to establish fair wage scales and safe working conditions — from bullet proof vests for police officers and back up systems at refineries to controls against inappropriate political interference. Often, these workers — whether in public or private service — are the first line of defense for ensuring public safety and environmental protection.

“These defenders of our environment, public health and communities should have the power to collectively bargain for safe working conditions and a just career track. It is their right. And the New Jersey Environmental Federation supports them in that fight."

Ten Democratic legislators who attended the rally also issued a statement of support.

“Today’s rally was a great display of unity among the many labor organizations that have made New Jersey a great place to live and work,” it read. “It was also a reminder that collective bargaining and worker rights have helped build this state and nation but are now at risk.

“We cannot let the anti-worker sentiment that has pervaded Wisconsin infect New Jersey. We attended this rally to show our support for union rights and protect them for generations to come. We support union rights, which, after all, are human rights. We support collective bargaining and negotiation, not dictation. And we call on the governor to immediately begin negotiations with the labor unions and commit to fair discussions.”

The legislators are Senate Majority Leader Barbara Buono (D-Middlesex), Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Middlesex), and Assembly members Nelson Albano (D-Atlantic), Daniel Benson (D-Mercer), Wayne DeAngelo (D-Mercer), Thomas Giblin (D-Essex), Reed Gusciora (D-Mercer), John McKeon (D-Essex), Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Mercer).

Two Wisconsin public employees, Arlyn Halvorson and Susan Blaustein, provided accounts of the protest in Madison. National AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Laurel Brennan, National Communications Workers of America President Larry Cohen, International Union of Painters & Allied Trades President James Williams, National Education Association Vice President Lilly Eskelsen, New Jersey Education Association President Barbara Keshishian, New Jersey NAACP President James Harris, and HPAE & AFT International Vice President Ann Twomey also addressed the crowd.