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<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=359284717-27022011>Fine article from Iraq Veterans Against the War,
Madison. Lee</SPAN></FONT></DIV><BR>
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<FONT face=Tahoma size=2><B>From:</B>
ufpj-activist-bounces+leeloe=igc.org@lists.mayfirst.org
[mailto:ufpj-activist-bounces+leeloe=igc.org@lists.mayfirst.org] <B>On Behalf Of
</B>Siri Margerin<BR><B>Sent:</B> Saturday, February 26, 2011 8:25
PM<BR><B>To:</B> ufpj-activist@lists.mayfirst.org<BR><B>Subject:</B>
[ufpj-activist] please share widely<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
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<DIV><FONT class=Apple-style-span face="'Helvetica Neue'" size=3><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px">***PLEASE FORWARD
WIDELY***</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: arial, helvetica, sans-serif" size=2>
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<DIV><FONT class=Apple-style-span face="'Helvetica Neue'" size=3><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px"><I>Todd Denis from IVAW Madison
Reading the IVAW statement from the floor.</I></SPAN></FONT></DIV><FONT
class=Apple-style-span face="'Helvetica Neue'" size=3><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px"><BR><B>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. <BR><BR>Iraq Veterans Against the War
to Troops: “We Are Public Employees Too!” </B><BR><BR>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. <BR><BR>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. <BR><BR>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. <BR><BR>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. <BR><BR>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. <BR><BR>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. <BR><BR>If you are a service member facing
mobilization or know someone in the military who is you can contact IVAW via
email at </SPAN></FONT><A href="mailto:ivaw@ivaw.org" target=_blank><FONT
class=Apple-style-span color=#000000><FONT class=Apple-style-span
face="'Helvetica Neue'" size=3><SPAN class=Apple-style-span
style="FONT-SIZE: 12px">ivaw@ivaw.org</SPAN></FONT></FONT></A><FONT
class=Apple-style-span face="'Helvetica Neue'" size=3><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px"> or by phone at (646)
723-0989, M-F 10am-6pm EST.</SPAN></FONT></FONT>
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