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¡Viva Los Teamsters!
Spirit of Unity at Teamsters National Hispanic Caucus 2012 Convention
Hundreds of Teamster delegates and members came together in July for the 2012 Teamster Hispanic Caucus Convention in Los Angeles. In the largest gathering of the Caucus to date, Hispanic Teamsters heard from labor leaders, elected officials, workers, and civil rights icon Dolores Huerta.
With the middle class continuing to face attacks by the ruling 1 percent, speakers at the convention emphasized the importance of get-out-the-vote efforts and beating back the war on workers.
“We must reverse the trend of attacks on workers over the last few years,” said George Miranda, Hispanic Caucus President, International Vice President and Secretary-Treasurer of Local 210. “It’s our job to register Latinos and get out the vote because if Mitt Romney becomes president, right-to-work-for-less will be the law of the land.”
The emphasis on political involvement was not limited to the national sphere. Speakers and attendees highlighted the attack on unions in California where anti-worker politicians are pushing Proposition 32, a measure that would restrict the political advocacy of unions on behalf of workers. Teamster ally Maria Elena Durazo of the L.A. County Federation of Labor echoed Joint Council 42 President Randy Cammack who urged delegates to help defeat Proposition 32 and other anti-worker measures around the country.
The battle for workers in California underscored the need to elect union men and women to political office—someone like former Teamster and astronaut Jose Hernandez, who is running for Congress in California’s 10th District. Hernandez, a former member of Local 601, was a keynote speaker at the convention. His incredible journey from migrant farmer to astronaut to politician amazed Teamsters at the convention.
“We need to fight in Congress to protect collective bargaining and create jobs so we can say to our kids that the sky is not the limit, space is,” Hernandez said.
Delegates also heard from International Vice President Al Mixon, Chairman of the Teamsters National Black Caucus, who delivered a message of solidarity to the Hispanic Caucus and stressed the power of unity.
Organizing for Rights
This year’s convention was also an opportunity to highlight recent organizing victories and ongoing campaigns in which Latino workers are leading the fight for dignity and respect in the workplace.
“Coming to a convention like this gives me strength,” said Karla Campos, a sanitation worker and leader in the campaign to organize workers at American Reclamation. “It’s inspiring to know that when I go back to work, we have so much support from the Teamsters.”
Workshops were held on coalition-building and developing alliances with immigrant rights and environmental groups. Teamsters learned about organizing immigrant workers like car wash employees in Los Angeles and discussed strategy with organizers from the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy (LAANE) and Don’t Waste L.A., two coalitions formed in part by the Teamsters.
The Caucus also passed a resolution pledging to take the lead in struggles for immigration reform, a theme discussed throughout the convention.
Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) sent a video message to the Caucus. U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis sent a message reaffirming the Obama administration’s commitment to a strong middle class and growing labor movement.
Officers Reelected, Labor Legend Speaks to Caucus
On the final day of the convention, Hispanic Teamsters were honored to hear from Dolores Huerta, the trailblazing labor activist who co-founded the United Farm Workers union along with the legendary Cesar Chavez. Huerta shared her decades of wisdom as a union organizer and inspired Teamsters facing the present-day attacks on working families.
“The most important thing for us to do is to educate our communities because a lot of people don’t understand what unions do,” she said.
Huerta added that labor needs to join forces with women and LGBT groups and it needs to stand up against racism, which the 1 percent uses to divide working people and break unions.
“Every worker needs to be an organizer. Labor built the middle class and without the middle class you do not have a democracy,” Huerta said.
As Huerta finished her remarks, the 82-year-old veteran of labor and civil rights struggle brought the crowd to its feet chanting “¡Sí se puede!” (Yes we can!)
Delegates voted for the Hispanic Caucus to remain involved in the fight against the war on workers and passed a resolution to work with the International on get-out-the-vote drives in support of President Obama’s reelection. They also reelected the current team of Hispanic Caucus officers and trustees led by George Miranda and Local 36 Secretary-Treasurer Art Cantu, the body’s First Vice President. Miranda reappointed International Trustee Ron Herrera as Executive Director of the Caucus.
“We still face a lot of discrimination as workers,” Herrera said. “The right wing is going to keep coming at us, but we’re Teamsters and we know how to fight. We’re members of the greatest union in the world.”