East Orange, NJ – The People’s Organization for Progress (POP) held a protest here, Dec. 18 against the recently concluded ‘budget deal’ that will end unemployment benefits to 1.3 million people at the end of this month and to many more in months after.

A common theme of speakers was the way Wall Street continues to rake in huge profits even while millions of people suffer and go hungry. The role of the Democrats in supporting the cuts was condemned.

The budget deal is supposedly a victory for the Democrats, since even passing something as routine as a funding bill has become a big deal in Congress. But the workers are still the losers.

15 people turned up at short notice. Organized labor was represented, as was Veterans for Peace, the Coalition to Save Our Homes, the Irvington NAACP, the Popcorn Kids and the POP youth auxiliary. The multinational gathering signified the broad people’s unity that is the real strength of the people’s struggle for economic justice.

After the protest, several people left to go to the offices on Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Representative Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NKJ) to demand that the cuts be restored.

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