AFL-CIO Union Leader Says Workers Don't Have A Party That Fights For Them

[Itsthetruth]

Interview with Andy Stern (A), president of the Service Employees
International Union, by journalists David Bacon and Philip
Maldari
January 19, 2005



David Bacon: Last summer you called for a reassessment of the relationship between the labor movement and the Democratic Party after the election. What kind of reevaluation process do you see now that the election is past?

Andy Stern: Workers don't have a party right now that speaks clearly and precisely to their economic interests. We don't have a party that says we need to reward work in America. We don't have a party that fights every day so that every man, woman and child has healthcare. Workers are looking for leadership on the economic issues that confront them every day, and don't see in either the Democrats or the Republicans the kind of leadership they want.

It is up to our union and other unions to raise the question, Where
are the organizations that speak for us? Can we change the
organizations that are there to be more responsive to workers? If
not, what do we need to do? We're not going to win elections for
workers when you don't have parties that run on platforms that mean
much change in their lives. If you as the average worker to write
down the Democratic Party's view on the economy, the best you might
get would be the balanced budget, which is not really something that
will motivate people or give them passion to get people elected.

People are facing real life problems - they're losing their jobs.
They're losing their healthcare. They can't raise their families the
way they want to. They're worried about college costs. And we don't
have a clear and precise message coming from any party that speaks to those questions. And I think it's time that we talk about those
questions out loud.

The first thing is not to sit there silently, and believe that we
have no ability to change that. There has to be a discussion about
where is there anyone speaking about the concerns of workers. It's
hardest to start at the top, at the level of the Presidential
election. We have to get clear among people who believe that work in
America is an important consideration, that the 90% of the people who do it every day should be rewarded, and build a party off of that premise, either an alternative to the existing parties, or by running candidates in existing parties, or taking out people in existing parties who are against those interests. We've been too nice too long.

http://www.ilcaonline.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=2048&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0

[ProgressiveConn]

1. He is right.

Under the influence of the DLC we have ignored Labor.