Meeting The Challenge Labor Education Committee


Tenth Annual Conference


Which Way Forward For The Labor Movement After 9/11?


March 8-9, 2002


Weyerhaueser Chapel, Macalester College


1600 Grand Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota


Free And Open To The Public

Recent events have certainly taught us how fast things can change.
The recession that began last spring was already slowing growth and
increasing pressure on workers' employment, wages, and benefits well
before September 11. But since the tragic events of that date,
thousands of Minnesota workers have lost their jobs, from Northwest
and Sun Country Airlines to downtown hotels and more.

The immigrant
workers who were giving such an important shot in the arm to the
labor movement in the past three years are now the objects of hate
crimes and discrimination on and off the job. The hopeful turnaround
in union membership and power that we saw in the last couple of years
appears stymied, if not thrown into reverse. Meanwhile, the corporate
agenda of globalization, privatization, deregulation, anti-unionism,
and increased wealth for the wealthy has continued unabated, from
welfare "reform" to increased pressure in the workplace to produce
more for less.

Working people need unions and collective
organization more than ever. International solidarity among unions,
environmental organizations, civil and human rights groups, and
progressive political forces is no longer merely a vision. It is
becoming a reality. Just this week, unions in thirty countries, from
South Afica to the US, protested the arrests of South Korean union
leaders with letters, emails, petitions, faxes, and demonstrations at
South Korean embassies. Such actions suggest what is possible if we
make the labor movement's long standing motto -- "An Injury to One is
an Injury to All" -- our watchword from our local communities to the
global economy.

On March 8-9, the Meeting the Challenge Labor
Education Committee will be holding its tenth annual conference at
Macalester College in St. Paul. We are asking "Which Way Forward for
the Labor Movement after 9/11?" and we are seeking your input into
finding answers and exploring ways to take our answers into the wider
labor movement.

We will open on Friday night, March 8, with an
exploration of the relationship between International Women's Day and
the labor movement by Gladys McKenzie, a long-time organizer and
activist with AFSCME and, particularly, the University of Minnesota's
clerical and technical workers' union. We will also be treated to a
new play by the Solidarity Kids Theater. They have taught us so much
in the past about child labor in the global economy, the complex
positions of immigrants in our local communities, and the ways that
young people can be the leaders of today, not just tomorrow, and,
this year, they have developed a show that will present their
perspectives on 9/11 and its impact on our lives.

The program begins
at 7:00 PM. Don't be late! On Saturday, March 9, we will hear from
people with ground level experience in the struggles of workers and
immigrants in our community -- including the Somali Justice Center,
the Welfare Rights Committee, the National Lawyers Guild, and the
Resource Center of the Americas. We will also hear reports from
local union activists about their struggles -- including the
Machinists Local at Northwest Airlines, AFSCME and MAPE about their
historic strike in October, HERE about their efforts to continue to
organize, SEIU about their new organizing projects, and more.

The
centerpiece of our program will be an address from America's most
respected labor historian, David Montgomery, about the lessons of
labor struggles during war-time situations in 20th century America.
David was actually a shop steward in the UE at Honeywell in
Minneapolis and an activist in the Twin Cities labor movement in the
1950s. He went on to study labor history at the University of
Minnesota, to teach at the University of Pittsburgh and Yale, to
lecture in England, France, and Italy, to write many books and
articles, and to be elected president of the Organization of American
Historians. In the latter position, he led a boycott of a racist
hotel chain in St. Louis two years ago, and he promoted awareness of
the predicament of part-time faculty. While at Yale, he has been an
outspoken supporter of unionized blue collar and white collar workers
as well as grad students who have tried to organize. Widely known as
a compelling public speaker, David will be helping us think through
how we can strengthen the labor movement in this difficult political
environment.

Saturday's program begins with signing in and coffee at
8:00 AM, with speakers at 9:00 AM sharp. We hope that you and your
fellow union members will join us for this historic, tenth annual
conference. Together, we can find answers to the difficult questions
which challenge us. Please call me if you have questions --
651-696-6371. In Solidarity,

Peter Rachleff

Chairperson, Meeting the Challenge Committee