On Wednesday, August 7th, the city of Tijuana bulldozed the houses of the
community of "Cerro Maravilla, Puerto al Futuro" (Magnificent Hill, Door to
the Future). For the past five days I have been in Tijuana, accompanying
members of the community in a sit-in at city hall, documenting their struggle
and their negotiations with the city. I have been with them 24/7, both at
city hall and on their land, and seen first-hand the destruction wrought by
the demolition. Though the city says the demolition occured to protect the resident's safety, others see it as a greedy land grab directly resulting from maquilla politics, and "free trade".
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how you can help to support these residents and their survival needs.
On Thusday morning, Aug. 1st, '02, sixty Assi Market workers were indefinitely suspended from their workplace for exercising their right to organize the Immigrant Workers Union. The IWU is a new trilingual Korean and Latino working class alliance forming under intense pressure from management at the Assi Market in Koreatown,3525 W. 8th St. (at Oxford, just east of Western). Owner Daniel Rhee (cell 213-494-9758) and management (213-388-0900) think that by harassing and suspending sixty workers without pay they can bust this union, but immigrant workers together with their children and families,
KIWA (Korean Immigrant Workers Advocates), and other community members intend to see to it that Mr. Rhee and Assi managers cannot prevent these workers from resisting poverty and establishing their organization for the benefit of their fellow workers. In early December 2001, Assi, under Rhee Bros. Inc. (410-381-9000) hired a union busting law firm, Littler & Mendelson, and is now using the pretext of the
Social Security No Match letter to suspend these workers. THIS IS AN ATTACK ON THE WHOLE IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY! We cannot have employers exploit workers for
years and years and then when they organize or stand up for their rights, use the social security no match letter as a tactic to bust the union!
PICKETS CONTINUE DAILY FROM NOON TO 8PM. Please call KIWA for details 213-738-9050. On September 14, there will be a BIG Community Meeting at Carecen from 3 to 5 pm with the IWU, Forever 21 Campaign, the Garment Workers Center, and KIWA.
NEEDED: TEMPORARY WORK FOR ASSI WORKERS. If you or your organization has any temporary jobs or leads, please call KIWA.
A STRIKE FUND HAS BEEN SET UP; any donation would help cover the workers' rent and other emergency expenses for the next month and allow them to continue on with their struggle for justice. For more information, call Cindy Cho at 213-738-9050 ext. 100.
STOP BY & ENERGIZE THE ASSI WORKERS THAT ARE OUT THERE 8 HRS. A DAY !
"NO UNION?! - NO PEACE!"
"QUE QUEREMOS? - JUSTICIA!"
“Contract, Yes! Government intervention, No!” was the message of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), the AFL-CIO, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and many mayors at rallies up and down the West Coast, Aug. 12. Thousands took to the streets in protest of a threat by the Bush administration to take over ports militarily in the event that the union decides to strike.
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Also, analyst David Bacon wrote an excellent article on the ILWU's conflict with the Bush Administration; and Global Indymedia recently compiled an in-depth feature on the West Coast Longshore Workers.