June 10, 2020
On Friday, June 12, 2020 at 1:00PM, Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County has organized a silent march that will lead from Judkins Park to Jefferson Park in Seattle. Several members of the Local 174 staff intend to dress in full Teamster colors to show support for this incredible grassroots protest movement, and we encourage any interested members and allies to join us!
The march is expected to be peaceful, and will conclude well before dark. The risk of spreading COVID-19 should be somewhat mitigated by the fact that it is a silent march, which means there will not be chanting or shouting. We expect anyone marching with our delegation to wear a face covering of some variety.
As for the General Strike called for that same day, our participation is somewhat less straightforward. Because of the no strike clauses in our contracts, we cannot, will not, and are not telling you to participate in the General Strike. It is your individual choice to make on whether or not to participate. Just know that your Union will support you in any way we can. There will also be several members of the Local 174 staff withholding their labor on Friday in solidarity with the General Strike.
We cannot understate the importance of movements such as this one. Whenever a time comes when the downtrodden must rise up, we find that Labor rights and civil rights go hand in hand, and Labor has consistently been on the right side of civil rights issues. In 1958, IBT General President Jimmy Hoffa sent a letter to all Teamster Local Unions in the country reaffirming a “policy of non-discrimination because of race, color, or creed.” He went on to say that “as members of the American Labor movement, we support every tenet of Americanism. Equal opportunity is one of those tenets.” Seven years later, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. thanked the Teamsters for their support, saying that “Labor’s problems are our problems and our problems are Labor’s problems.”
Just as Jimmy Hoffa and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. recognized more than 60 years ago, so now must we all recognize our role in the struggle to end systemic racism and brutality by those who have sworn an oath to protect and serve, as well as the deep inequities in our society. We urge you all to support this struggle in whatever way you can. If that means coming with us to the silent march on Friday afternoon, then we look forward to seeing you there. We will be carrying signs with messages making it clear that the Teamsters stand strong at the backs of anyone who needs us.
