Roots of Unity

by Mike Allen, Guild President

Mike Allen, President,
GCC Guild

Do Or Die

“All Guild members need to communicate with their friends, families, and neighbors to tell them what a disaster propositions 74, 75, and 76 would be for education in California.”

As you all know, the special election on November 8 is rapidly approaching, and our time to act is dwindling. We must defeat the Governor's attacks on public workers in a resounding manner, and the Guild has undertaken a number of actions towards that end. At our September meeting we voted to send money supporting the mailers and TV ads created by statewide organizations, as well as providing support for a local mailer from the Glendale Works coalition of local public sector unions. We have also been engaged in voter registration on campus, and this continues through October 21(if you are interested in staffing a table or in distributing voter registration forms to your students, contact Greg Perkins).
Further, we have to back this up with one-on-one contact. All Guild members need to communicate with their friends, families, and neighbors to tell them what a disaster propositions 74, 75, and 76 would be for education in California. You can even take the tack that CSEA has and simply tell them to vote "No on November" as a repudiation of the abuse by Governor Schwarzenegger of the special election process. Postcards (the Guild office has some), phone calls, and face-to-face visits can be combined to cover the voters in your life.
However, a final component gives us a decisive edge over the big businesses who are funding the governor's attempted power grab. Labor unions can put large numbers of "boots on the ground" during precinct walks, and some of you have already been doing so this election season. The Glendale Works coalition will be sponsoring walks here in the city, as well as phone banking sessions during October and early November. Scripts will be provided so that you don't have to craft your message from scratch, as will lists of households with "high-propensity" voters, so you won't be wasting your time on people unlikely to vote. If you haven't already, please contact me to let me know if you can help in either of these ways.

Member Benefits
As I often do in this column, I want to call your attention to some of the benefits of membership in the AFL-CIO, something which all Guild members enjoy. The AFL-CIO's benefit program is called UnionPlus, and it offers an array of deals, such as on quality union-made clothes. Visit www.UnionPlus.org/Clothing and receive a discount of up to 10 percent.

Also, a UnionPlus credit card is available to qualified individuals. In addition to offering competitive terms, the card now also provides greater "safety net" benefits. Cardholders can be eligible for a break in payments during times of financial hardship, whether caused by a strike, natural disasters, or a layoff. To apply, visit the following website: http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/Q71L_ld1gPt_/

Finally, UnionPlus offers discounts on Internet service and on Dell computers. Visit www.UnionPlus.org/Computers for details.&

CHAPARRAL