[PAA-Discuss] FW: [ufpj-activist] please share widely

[Lee Loe]

Fine article from Iraq Veterans Against the War, Madison. Lee

  _____  

From: ufpj-activist-bounces+leeloe=igc.org at lists.mayfirst.org
[mailto:ufpj-activist-bounces+leeloe=igc.org at lists.mayfirst.org] On Behalf
Of Siri Margerin
Sent: Saturday, February 26, 2011 8:25 PM
To: ufpj-activist at lists.mayfirst.org
Subject: [ufpj-activist] please share widely


***PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY***

Todd Denis from IVAW Madison Reading the IVAW statement from the floor.

Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) calls on all U.S. military service
members to refuse and resist any mobilization against workers organizing to
protect their basic rights. IVAW stands in solidarity with the multitude
gathered in Madison, Wisconsin and many other cities to defend their unions.


Iraq Veterans Against the War to Troops: "We Are Public Employees Too!" 

We believe military service members are public employees too. It is
dishonorable to suggest that military personnel should be deployed against
teachers, health care providers, firefighters, police officers, and other
government employees, many of whom are themselves serving in the National
Guard. 

Workers with prior military service often seek jobs in the public sector
because government agencies are the only employers that follow hiring
preferences for veterans as a matter of law. According to the Army Times,
veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan are unemployed at a rate of 15.2%, higher
than the national average. The picture is even worse for African American
veterans who face nearly double the rate of unemployment. Protecting the
rights of workers in public sector unions ensures that veterans have a
chance to secure a decent job, earning a living wage and good benefits. 

Madison, WI is ground zero for a fight that will likely define the
relationship between public sector unions and the governments that employ
them for decades to come. Similar to the federal government's defeat of the
1980 Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) strike, which
signaled the beginning of a thirty-year decline of real wages, benefits, and
union membership for private sector workers. What happens in Madison today
is likely to affect whether governments across the country can destroy a
decent standard of living for public sector workers in the future. 

Governor Scott Walker recently stated that he was preparing the National
Guard to respond to "labor unrest" following the introduction of
union-busting legislation in Wisconsin. Governor Walker has attempted to
justify this attack on collective bargaining by pointing to state budget
shortfalls. Missing from this explanation is an acknowledgment that these
deficits have been created and exacerbated by the ongoing trillion dollar
wars and occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Meanwhile, federal and local
governments across the U.S. are cutting back on the public sector. 

Troops have been called out in the past against worker strikes, campus
protests, and urban uprisings. However, recent events in Egypt and numerous
examples from U.S. history have shown that service members have the power to
side with the people and refuse to use violence against their fellow
citizens. Troops activated for duty in Madison, WI will have to decide if
public sector workers are really the enemy. IVAW says they are not and that
troops should support workers fighting for decent jobs, wages, and benefits.


We know firsthand that the U.S. military is already overextended from a
decade at war. Through our Operation Recovery campaign, we have been
fighting for the right of our troops to heal, rather than being
involuntarily redeployed with severe physical and psychological injuries.
Adding another mission to an already overburdened military for the purposes
of suppressing the rights of workers is irresponsible and not worthy of our
service. 

If you are a service member facing mobilization or know someone in the
military who is you can contact IVAW via email at  <mailto:ivaw at ivaw.org>
ivaw at ivaw.org or by phone at (646) 723-0989, M-F 10am-6pm EST. 





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