SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Rideshare drivers and organizers approach a pickup location at LAX and call on Congress to pass the Protect the Right to Organize (PRO) Act in Los Angeles on July 21, 2021. (Photo: Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Urging Dems to 'Fight for Justice,' Progressives Launch 'Pass the PRO Act Holiday Tour'
"We've seen time and time again, when Democrats don't deliver quickly for their base and for labor, bad things happen, and you're approaching that precipice again."
Dec 06, 2021
Declaring that "workers are under attack," Our Revolution--the progressive advocacy group born from Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign--Communications Workers of America, and the Worker Power Coalition on Monday rallied outside the Phoenix office of Sen. Kyrsten Sinema to kick off the "Pass the Pro Act Holiday Tour."
"We have a chance to pass the most important labor law since FDR, since the 1930s."
"Workers are coming together, fighting back, standing up for their rights," Our Revolution field director Mike Oles said at Monday's action.
"We have a chance to pass the most important labor law since FDR, since the 1930s," Oles added, a reference to former President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal reforms.
Supported by economists, labor groups, and numerous advocacy organizations, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act would expand collective bargaining rights, improve access to union elections, and impose penalties on businesses that exploit their workers.
"Our goal with the PRO Act is to make sure that workers' right to organize a union isn't infringed upon by greedy corporations," Oles explained.
"We need Democrats to fight for justice and stand up," he added. "We need Kyrsten Sinema... to do the right thing... and support the PRO Act, support filibuster reform, support moving this country forward, support [President] Joe Biden's agenda."
After Monday's action in Phoenix, the campaign will demonstrate outside the Arizona Democrat's Tucson office before hitting the road to target Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), as well as Reps. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), and Henry Cuellar (D-Texas).
Cuellar--a corporate Democrat who is being primaried by progressive Jessica Cisneros--was the lone Democrat to join 205 Republicans in voting against the PRO Act, which the House passed in March. The evenly split Senate has not voted on the measure.
"The idea is that it's not just directed at one or two people," Dan Mauer of CWA--part of the Worker Power Coalition--told Politico. "Obviously, there's been a lot of attention on a couple senators who haven't signed on yet, but we really think that it's the responsibility of the whole Democratic caucus."
"Obviously we'd love Republican support, too, but that seems less likely," Mauer added. "So we're trying to build momentum to show that no matter where you are--a swing state or a blue state or anything in between--that this has got to be a priority for you."
Oles had a warning as the nation approaches the 2022 midterm election campaigns.
"We've seen time and time again," he told Politico. "When Democrats don't deliver quickly for their base and for labor, bad things happen, and you're approaching that precipice again."
"We've lived through that many times," Oles added. "Let's not make that mistake. Let's get some major labor law reform going so workers can have a real voice on the job."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Declaring that "workers are under attack," Our Revolution--the progressive advocacy group born from Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign--Communications Workers of America, and the Worker Power Coalition on Monday rallied outside the Phoenix office of Sen. Kyrsten Sinema to kick off the "Pass the Pro Act Holiday Tour."
"We have a chance to pass the most important labor law since FDR, since the 1930s."
"Workers are coming together, fighting back, standing up for their rights," Our Revolution field director Mike Oles said at Monday's action.
"We have a chance to pass the most important labor law since FDR, since the 1930s," Oles added, a reference to former President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal reforms.
Supported by economists, labor groups, and numerous advocacy organizations, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act would expand collective bargaining rights, improve access to union elections, and impose penalties on businesses that exploit their workers.
"Our goal with the PRO Act is to make sure that workers' right to organize a union isn't infringed upon by greedy corporations," Oles explained.
"We need Democrats to fight for justice and stand up," he added. "We need Kyrsten Sinema... to do the right thing... and support the PRO Act, support filibuster reform, support moving this country forward, support [President] Joe Biden's agenda."
After Monday's action in Phoenix, the campaign will demonstrate outside the Arizona Democrat's Tucson office before hitting the road to target Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), as well as Reps. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), and Henry Cuellar (D-Texas).
Cuellar--a corporate Democrat who is being primaried by progressive Jessica Cisneros--was the lone Democrat to join 205 Republicans in voting against the PRO Act, which the House passed in March. The evenly split Senate has not voted on the measure.
"The idea is that it's not just directed at one or two people," Dan Mauer of CWA--part of the Worker Power Coalition--told Politico. "Obviously, there's been a lot of attention on a couple senators who haven't signed on yet, but we really think that it's the responsibility of the whole Democratic caucus."
"Obviously we'd love Republican support, too, but that seems less likely," Mauer added. "So we're trying to build momentum to show that no matter where you are--a swing state or a blue state or anything in between--that this has got to be a priority for you."
Oles had a warning as the nation approaches the 2022 midterm election campaigns.
"We've seen time and time again," he told Politico. "When Democrats don't deliver quickly for their base and for labor, bad things happen, and you're approaching that precipice again."
"We've lived through that many times," Oles added. "Let's not make that mistake. Let's get some major labor law reform going so workers can have a real voice on the job."
Declaring that "workers are under attack," Our Revolution--the progressive advocacy group born from Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign--Communications Workers of America, and the Worker Power Coalition on Monday rallied outside the Phoenix office of Sen. Kyrsten Sinema to kick off the "Pass the Pro Act Holiday Tour."
"We have a chance to pass the most important labor law since FDR, since the 1930s."
"Workers are coming together, fighting back, standing up for their rights," Our Revolution field director Mike Oles said at Monday's action.
"We have a chance to pass the most important labor law since FDR, since the 1930s," Oles added, a reference to former President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal reforms.
Supported by economists, labor groups, and numerous advocacy organizations, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act would expand collective bargaining rights, improve access to union elections, and impose penalties on businesses that exploit their workers.
"Our goal with the PRO Act is to make sure that workers' right to organize a union isn't infringed upon by greedy corporations," Oles explained.
"We need Democrats to fight for justice and stand up," he added. "We need Kyrsten Sinema... to do the right thing... and support the PRO Act, support filibuster reform, support moving this country forward, support [President] Joe Biden's agenda."
After Monday's action in Phoenix, the campaign will demonstrate outside the Arizona Democrat's Tucson office before hitting the road to target Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), as well as Reps. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), and Henry Cuellar (D-Texas).
Cuellar--a corporate Democrat who is being primaried by progressive Jessica Cisneros--was the lone Democrat to join 205 Republicans in voting against the PRO Act, which the House passed in March. The evenly split Senate has not voted on the measure.
"The idea is that it's not just directed at one or two people," Dan Mauer of CWA--part of the Worker Power Coalition--told Politico. "Obviously, there's been a lot of attention on a couple senators who haven't signed on yet, but we really think that it's the responsibility of the whole Democratic caucus."
"Obviously we'd love Republican support, too, but that seems less likely," Mauer added. "So we're trying to build momentum to show that no matter where you are--a swing state or a blue state or anything in between--that this has got to be a priority for you."
Oles had a warning as the nation approaches the 2022 midterm election campaigns.
"We've seen time and time again," he told Politico. "When Democrats don't deliver quickly for their base and for labor, bad things happen, and you're approaching that precipice again."
"We've lived through that many times," Oles added. "Let's not make that mistake. Let's get some major labor law reform going so workers can have a real voice on the job."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.