Las Vegas, NV – Illinois labor leaders supporting Senator Barack Obama came together on a conference call today to discuss Obama’s strong labor record and his longstanding commitment to working men and women. On the call, they described Obama as a tireless fighter for living wages, affordable health care and workers’ rights, citing his work as a community organizer in Chicago and as an Illinois State Senator.
“He comes from us, and he understands our problems,” said Tom Balanoff, President of SEIU State Council and Local 1. “He has consistently stood with working families because he’s from a working family.”
“Every day he was in the State Senate, he was standing up for working people,” said Margaret Blackshere, President Emeritus of Illinois AFL-CIO. “When the steel mills were shutting down, Obama said to me ‘You know, I see the difference when someone belongs to a union and when they don’t. You’re their advocate, and I’m going to be an advocate for all of you.’”
“Barack Obama has been an effective legislator and can work across party lines and with a diverse group of people,” said Henry Tamarin, President, UNITE HERE Local 1. “It’s not flashy, but those of us who worked with him in Illinois saw his effectiveness as a legislator and a leader who was able to bring people together.”
For years, Obama fought alongside unions in Illinois for social and economic justice for working families. As a U.S. Senator, Barack Obama was co-sponsor of the Employee Free Choice Act, which would make it easier for workers to unionize. Obama’s strong pro-labor record was cited by AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Henry Bayer as one of the reasons AFSCME Illinois voted unanimously to split with AFSCME International and endorse Obama.
“He’s not just a guy who talks the talk, he’s a guy who walks the walk,” said Bayer. “We have a lot of members from rural Illinois, we have a lot of members who are correctional officers, not the kind of people you would ordinarily think would be supporters of Barack Obama, but they support him strongly,” said Bayer. “I think that speaks to the strength of his candidacy.”
Added Tamarin, “What the U.S. Senate run demonstrated is that as he gets exposed to the voting public and people get to know him, he adds on support, he doesn’t lose it. And I think we’re seeing that same dynamic now in the presidential campaign.”
Listen to the full conference call here:
Read Barack’s comprehensive plan to Fight for America’s Workers.
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