The time to stand up for union principles is noon on Saturday. The BC Fed and the CEP, along with many other unions have decided to demonstrate our support of the Occupy Wall Street movement by rallying at the Vancouver Art Gallery at noon on Saturday.
While this is not simply a union-organized demonstration, the labour movement of B.C. does support the broad aims of a movement that has spread across the world.
Here is the statement of agreement from the Occupy Vancouver website:
“We, the Ninety-Nine Percent, come together with our diverse experiences to transform the unequal, unfair, and growing disparity in the distribution of power and wealth in our city and around the globe. We challenge corporate greed, corruption, and the collusion between corporate power and government. We oppose systemic inequality, militarization, environmental destruction, and the erosion of civil liberties and human rights. We seek economic security, genuine equality, and the protection of the environment for all.
“We are inspired and in solidarity with global movements including those across the Middle East, Europe, and the Occupy Wall Street / Occupy Together movement in over 1000 cities in North America. Injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere.
“We humbly acknowledge that Occupy Vancouver is taking place on First Nation territories.
“We are committed to an inclusive and welcoming space, to addressing issues of oppression and discrimination, and to creating an environment where all the 99% can be heard and can meaningfully participate. We are also committed to safeguarding our collective well-being – including safety from interpersonal violence and any potential police violence.”
These are goals and positions that fit completely with the labour movement’s most cherished principles. Solidarity. Democracy. What we seek for ourselves we also wish for others.
Please attend.
Gary Engler
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