Labor’s Alliance for Economic Justice Endorses Senator John Kerry for President
Coalition of 19 Unions Believes Kerry Offers Best Hope for Workers, Affordable Health Care, Good Jobs and Fair Trade; Promises Massive Mobilization Effort
February 11, 2004
For Immediate Release
The Alliance for Economic Justice unanimously voted Wednesday to endorse Massachusetts Senator John F. Kerry in the Democratic presidential primary race. The 19 member unions of the Alliance acted after consulting with their leaders, members and activists and decided Senator Kerry represents the best chance to win back the White House in 2004.
The Alliance was founded in 2003 to fight for affordable, universal health care, job creation and a strong global economy based on fair trade.
“It was the choice of our union leaders to stand behind John Kerry and his more than 19 years of public service to working men and women,” said Joe Hunt, Chairman of the Alliance and General President of the Iron Workers Union. “He has the character, the passion and the strength to fight for a better future for America’s working families.”
Alliance unions, with approximately 5 million members nationwide, will put in place a massive grassroots voter education and mobilization effort for the remaining presidential primaries and for November’s general election. In New York and California alone, whose combined delegate count totals nearly one-fourth of those needed to secure the Democratic nomination, Alliance member unions have more than 500,000 members.
“The Alliance believes that John Kerry can end four years of record job loss and hardship for America’s working families,” said Hunt. “We will support John Kerry and continue to unite our members, our resources and our efforts behind putting the issues of job creation, affordable health care and fair trade at the top of the national agenda.”
The Alliance had endorsed Missouri Congressman Dick Gephardt. Representative Gephardt endorsed Senator Kerry on February 6, 2004.
The Alliance member unions are also currently uniting and cooperating to establish an international minimum wage, to develop cooperative and strategic organizing campaigns among alliance member unions and to pool the power of the groups’ millions of members into health care cooperatives to drive down the cost of health care.
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The Alliance for Economic Justice was formed in 2003 and consists of the following unions: the Air Line Pilots Association, American Maritime Officers, Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, Graphic Communications International Union, International Association of Iron Workers, Laborers’ Union, Machinists Union, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way, Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association, Office and Professional Employees Union, PACE International Union, Operative Plasterers’ and Cement Masons Union, Seafarers Union, Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Union, United Steelworkers of America, Teamsters Union, Transport Workers Union of America and United Food and Commercial Workers Union.
For more information, please visit www.allianceforeconomicjustice.org
http://johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2004_0211g.html
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