Best Buys
Raises...Roses...Solidarity...
Gifts for Activists
America Needs a Raise: Fighting for Economic Security and Social Justice. During the first half of 1996 under the banner America Needs a Raise, the AFL-CIO held 23 open meetings around the country focusing on problems facing the country's workers. AFL-CIO Pres. John Sweeney, with former AFSCME staffer and presidential speechwriter David Kusnet, has written a 166-page book that relives some of the most touching moments of those meetings and spells out ways to raise the standard of living for all American families. The book, dedicated to "all Americans who are worried about disappearing jobs, shrinking paychecks, vanishing health care, plundering pension plans, and the growing sense that their work is no longer respected and rewarded," provides an economic and political overview explaining where we are, how we got here, and how regular folks can jolt the economy back onto the right track-good tools for union activists. You can find it in your local library or bookstore; ask "Why not?" if they don't have it. You can order a copy from Houghton Mifflin, 181 Ballardvale St., Wilmington MA 01887 or call (800) 225-3362.
Standing Strong in Detroit is a poster created by artist Susan Kramer, a member of Detroit Typographical Union Local 18. On July 13, 1995 more than 2,500 workers represented by six local unions were forced out on strike by the Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press. Their employers have hired permanent replacement workers. Unions around the country are supporting the strikers and their families by contributing to their strike fund and by adopting striking families. You can help and do some early holiday shopping for activists on your list if you order copies today. Unsigned posters are $15; signed copies are $25. Get yours from Metropolitan Council of Newspaper Unions, C/O Speakers Bureau, 3100 E. Jefferson, Detroit MI 48207, or call (313)877-9016. And remember to boycott USA Today.
Whiteville Apparel Choir Together. With this audio tape, members of North Carolina Local 1077 UNITE! continue the singing tradition passed down from the "Bread and Roses" strike. The choir, which sang at UNITE!'s founding convention, belts out some of the "get 'em up and marching" union standards as well as original numbers. They got a plug from Pete Seeger, the respected folk singer and activist. "They are inspiring to young and old ... to everyone," he said. This, too, is a good holiday gift--and a bargain at $10. And, to top it off, money from sales of the tape goes to the union's political action fund. Send your check, made payable to UNITE! - Choir Project, 1010 Tucker St, Greensboro NC 27405 or call (910) 273-9709.
