CWA 1180 - Political Action

NYC Labor Against the War
On Anniversary, Labor to Protest War and Anti-Union Policies in Iraq
March 2005

U.S. Labor
Against the War
Protest

Sat., March 19, 2005
10 a.m. — 12 noon
location TBA

On March 19, the second anniversary of the Iraq War, New York City’s union members are calling for the immediate return of American troops from Iraq, as well as for the restoration of truly democratic rights to Iraqis, namely the right to unionize.

While “democratic” elections occurred at the end of January, the Iraqi government can hardly be considered representative when large sections of Sunni populated territories were unable to vote.

Beyond limiting representation in the government, Bush is also preventing widespread unionization. The Bush administration claims to disavow Saddam Hussein and what he stood for, yet they have maintained Hussein’s 1987 labor law outlawing unions in the public sector. U.S. troops are being ordered to work with the interim Iraqi government to silence workers. And in January, a central labor leader of the Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions, Hadi Saleh, was brutally murdered to thwart his organizing efforts.

The Federation of Workers’ Councils and Unions in Iraq as well as the Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions seek recognition of the rights of workers to organize and strike if necessary. Although there have been some successful negotiations thus far, our brothers and sisters in Iraq are at a critical juncture and need our support.

At home, the loss of life and the tab of the war keep getting larger, the cost approaching $200 billion, with $5 billion from New York City alone. Bush’s call for cutting Social Security benefits and slashing programs to lower the deficit is criminal considering the costs of war. As this war continues, we are losing more of our nation’s children whether in the battlegrounds of Iraq or the schoolyards of New York.

“We have no ambition in Iraq, except to remove a threat and restore control of that country to its own people,” said George W. Bush on the eve of the Iraq war two years ago. On March 19, join labor in demanding that our President keep his word to the Iraqis and the American people.

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