Sorry we have been absent! We have been really busy with lots of meetings and actions. GREAT NEWS!!! The schools at the Redlands and South Dade Labor Camps reopened. While HHA Director, Edmund Carrera, claimed to a reporter from the Miami Herald that he would sign the contract, the next day this was not the case. Jeanette, Bekah, and I went down to Homestead to thank and congratulate Mr. Carrera for choosing to keep the school open, but when we got there many of the parents and community members were saying he still hadn't signed. When confronted by the police and Mr. Carrera as they asked us to leave, Jeanette asked if she could say something to Mr. Carrera, and she told him that everyone was there to thank him because they thought he was going to sign the contract to reopen the schools. We were asked to leave the HHA property and some of us were even threatened with being arrested. We didn't back down, but instead went out on US-1 with signs. We were greeted with many honks and cheers of support. Not only did the people keep fighting, but so did the school board. They went back and forth with Mr. Carrera and their lawyers, until hours later the contract was signed. We received a call, as we had to leave, and could hear the cheers and cries of excitement. We couldn't believe it! We were all so excited to see that the people were able to come together and succeed, despite the extreme power inequality.

We had a real exciting week last week. We were able to attend two actions with labor unions. On Thursday July 16 we went up to the Miami Beach Resort to see a picket line in action. Unite Here! organized the event in order to voice concerns that current workers had. Throughout the picket some workers that were off came out and joined, and even more surprisingly workers on duty would lean over the driveway and join in with the chants. Unite Here! and the workers were articulating their frustration with poor treatment, pay, and benefits. While this wasn't the first picket line I have seen, it was the first one I participated in. Overall, it was great to see the community and workers coming together to raise awareness and make some noise for worker's rights issues.

Then, on Friday July 17, we went to a demonstration outside of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce in support of EFCA and Health Care Reform, as the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce plans to go to DC to lobby against EFCA. AFL-CIO organized the demonstration, but many unions were present. The crowd was lively and loud. Some people stood on the side of the road with signs and were greeted with many honks and cheers. Later, leaders from the different groups present went to talk to the chairman of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce to find out his take on EFCA. He claimed they were not going to just lobby against EFCA, and they hadn't taken a stance yet, but this is not true, as he has made statements to newspapers and other media sources that they do not support EFCA. Overall this demonstration was great, as the unions and all those present did a great job at getting their voices heard and getting information out.

These past few weeks have been great! We have been able to see and learn a lot, and have even been involved in some great actions.

Peace,
James