afscmelocal3800 &mdash; Fight Back! News https://fightbacknews.org/tag:afscmelocal3800 News and Views from the People's Struggle Tue, 04 Aug 2026 15:55:17 +0000 https://i.snap.as/RZCOEKyz.png afscmelocal3800 &mdash; Fight Back! News https://fightbacknews.org/tag:afscmelocal3800 AFSCME Local 3800: Justice for George Floyd! https://fightbacknews.org/afscme-local-3800-justice-george-floyd?pk_campaign=rss-feed <![CDATA[Protest called by Minnesota Workers United demands justice for George Floyd.") Fight Back News Service is circulating the following resolution from AFSCME Local 3800. !--more-- This is another heartbreaking day in America. AFSCME 3800 stands in solidarity with the family, friends, and loved ones of George Floyd, with the Black community, and with everyone demanding police accountability and justice. WHEREAS on May 25, 2020 a white Minneapolis police officer killed 46 year old George Floyd by kneeling on his neck for eight minutes while he pleaded to be allowed to breathe, and WHEREAS three other police officers assisted in restraining George Floyd while he was being killed, or spewed anti-black and war-on-drugs rhetoric, or stood by and did nothing, and WHEREAS the Black community repeatedly faces the deaths of loved ones at the hands of the police, and WHEREAS the core principle of the labor movement – “An Injury to One is An Injury to All” – requires all working people of conscience to take a stand for justice; THEREFOR BE IT RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 offers our deepest sympathy to, and stands in solidarity with, the family of George Floyd and the entire community. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for the immediate arrest and vigorous prosecution of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd. We further call for the immediate arrest and vigorous prosecution of officers Thomas Lane, Tou Thao, and J. Alexander Keung for aiding and abetting the murder of George Floyd. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for an immediate de-escalation by police and an end to police violence against protesters. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 supports President Gabel’s decision to sever the University of Minnesota’s contracts with the MPD and we call upon other institutions to likewise disassociate. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for immediate and ongoing community oversight of the Minneapolis Police Department. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for a thoroughgoing review of law enforcement policies and practices by federal, state, and local authorities, followed by concrete and systemic reforms to ensure that all people in our society are granted equal treatment by law enforcement and criminal justice systems, regardless of the color of their skin. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for an end to systemic racist police terror and the murder of black and brown people in our communities. BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 will mobilize our members to safely participate in or otherwise support actions called for by those seeking Justice for George Floyd. White supremacy and systemic oppression must end! Black Lives Matter! An injury to one is an injury to all! Adopted at the May 28, 2020 Membership Meeting #MinneapolisMN #Labor #OppressedNationalities #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #AFSCMELocal3800 #Antiracism #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd #MinneapolisUprising div id="sharingbuttons.io"/div]]> Protest called by Minnesota Workers United demands justice for George Floyd.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following resolution from AFSCME Local 3800.

This is another heartbreaking day in America. AFSCME 3800 stands in solidarity with the family, friends, and loved ones of George Floyd, with the Black community, and with everyone demanding police accountability and justice.

WHEREAS on May 25, 2020 a white Minneapolis police officer killed 46 year old George Floyd by kneeling on his neck for eight minutes while he pleaded to be allowed to breathe, and

WHEREAS three other police officers assisted in restraining George Floyd while he was being killed, or spewed anti-black and war-on-drugs rhetoric, or stood by and did nothing, and

WHEREAS the Black community repeatedly faces the deaths of loved ones at the hands of the police, and

WHEREAS the core principle of the labor movement – “An Injury to One is An Injury to All” – requires all working people of conscience to take a stand for justice;

THEREFOR BE IT RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 offers our deepest sympathy to, and stands in solidarity with, the family of George Floyd and the entire community.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for the immediate arrest and vigorous prosecution of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd. We further call for the immediate arrest and vigorous prosecution of officers Thomas Lane, Tou Thao, and J. Alexander Keung for aiding and abetting the murder of George Floyd.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for an immediate de-escalation by police and an end to police violence against protesters.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 supports President Gabel’s decision to sever the University of Minnesota’s contracts with the MPD and we call upon other institutions to likewise disassociate.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for immediate and ongoing community oversight of the Minneapolis Police Department.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for a thoroughgoing review of law enforcement policies and practices by federal, state, and local authorities, followed by concrete and systemic reforms to ensure that all people in our society are granted equal treatment by law enforcement and criminal justice systems, regardless of the color of their skin.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 calls for an end to systemic racist police terror and the murder of black and brown people in our communities.

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that AFSCME 3800 will mobilize our members to safely participate in or otherwise support actions called for by those seeking Justice for George Floyd.

White supremacy and systemic oppression must end!

Black Lives Matter!

An injury to one is an injury to all!

Adopted at the May 28, 2020 Membership Meeting

#MinneapolisMN #Labor #OppressedNationalities #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #AFSCMELocal3800 #Antiracism #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd #MinneapolisUprising

]]> https://fightbacknews.org/afscme-local-3800-justice-george-floyd Mon, 08 Jun 2020 18:47:34 +0000 Clerical workers confront U of MN President Gabel, Board of Regents https://fightbacknews.org/clerical-workers-confront-u-mn-president-gabel-board-regents?pk_campaign=rss-feed <![CDATA[Demand fairness and respect U of MN AFSCME members confront the Board of Regents.") Minneapolis, MN - University of Minnesota AFSCME members confronted soon-to-be-inaugurated University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel at the September 13 Board of Regents meeting in the McNamara Alumni Center. !--more-- Steph Taylor, AFSCME 3800 vice-president, said, “We presented over 1000 petition signatures demanding that our contributions should be respected with a contract that includes real wage increases and moves people to the top of the pay scale faster, with no increases to health care costs.” She added, “President Gabel has met with every employee group but refuses to meet with us while we are in negotiations. The fact is, this is the most important time to meet with us because what we are negotiating dictates our livelihoods - so we are putting ourselves on your agenda.” Cherrene Horazuk, AFSCME 3800 president said, “The university likes to talk about equity and inclusion, but they refuse to recognize and reward the contributions of the predominantly female clerical workforce. When it comes time for budgeting, the Board of Regents seems content to leave frontline staff behind.” Next week the university will be hosting inauguration activities and AFSCME will ensure visibility for the workers who do the behind- the-scenes work, every day, that makes the university run. #MinneapolisMN #PeoplesStruggles #AFSCMELocal3800 #UniversityOfMinnesotaRegents #PublicSectorUnions #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN div id="sharingbuttons.io"/div]]> Demand fairness and respect

U of MN AFSCME members confront the Board of Regents.

Minneapolis, MN – University of Minnesota AFSCME members confronted soon-to-be-inaugurated University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel at the September 13 Board of Regents meeting in the McNamara Alumni Center.

Steph Taylor, AFSCME 3800 vice-president, said, “We presented over 1000 petition signatures demanding that our contributions should be respected with a contract that includes real wage increases and moves people to the top of the pay scale faster, with no increases to health care costs.”

She added, “President Gabel has met with every employee group but refuses to meet with us while we are in negotiations. The fact is, this is the most important time to meet with us because what we are negotiating dictates our livelihoods – so we are putting ourselves on your agenda.”

Cherrene Horazuk, AFSCME 3800 president said, “The university likes to talk about equity and inclusion, but they refuse to recognize and reward the contributions of the predominantly female clerical workforce. When it comes time for budgeting, the Board of Regents seems content to leave frontline staff behind.”

Next week the university will be hosting inauguration activities and AFSCME will ensure visibility for the workers who do the behind- the-scenes work, every day, that makes the university run.

#MinneapolisMN #PeoplesStruggles #AFSCMELocal3800 #UniversityOfMinnesotaRegents #PublicSectorUnions #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN

]]> https://fightbacknews.org/clerical-workers-confront-u-mn-president-gabel-board-regents Fri, 13 Sep 2019 23:13:14 +0000 Labor, anti-war movements unite to protest U.S. aggression against Venezuela https://fightbacknews.org/labor-anti-war-movements-unite-protest-us-aggression-against-venezuela?pk_campaign=rss-feed <![CDATA[Minneapolis protest opposes U.S. war on Venezuela.") Minneapolis, MN – The streets were full of working-class solidarity on Saturday, February 23, when well over 100 people, including trade unionists, Latin America solidarity groups and anti-war activists gathered under the banner “U.S. hands off Venezuela!” !--more-- The event was part of a global day of action to protest the ongoing U.S.-backed coup attempt against the democratically elected President Nicolás Maduro. Protesters occupied multiple intersections in the high-density Uptown neighborhood of Minneapolis, distributing fliers and speaking with pedestrians about the situation in Venezuela. The demonstration took place as the coup attempt took a turn closer to an invasion, involving a high-profile attempt to storm the Venezuelan border from Colombia. U.S. and U.K. media spent much of the day highlighting groups seeking Maduro’s overthrow, who claim to bring U.S.-sponsored ‘humanitarian aid’ into Venezuela from Colombia. In a speech, Gerardo Cajamarca, an organizer with SEIU who is an asylee trade unionist from Colombia, rejected that narrative, saying, “Right now what is happening on the border of Colombia and Venezuela is coordinated by an interventionist group. It is very important that you, as United States citizens, tell your government not to go forward with this intervention. Latin Americans have the right to choose autonomy, to choose solidarity, to choose our own economic system.” In recent weeks, the International Red Cross and the United Nations had refused to participate in the U.S. plan to storm the Venezuelan border with so-called ‘aid.’ Both organizations explicitly rejected the ‘humanitarian’ label for the plan touted by U.S. officials, instead calling it politicized and concealing military objectives. At the Minneapolis event, Cajamarca also noted the hypocrisy of Colombian President Ivan Duque’s invocation of ‘humanitarian aid’ as cover for the coup attempt in Venezuela. “Yes, there is humanitarian need; yes, there is genocide – in Colombia!” he said. “They are murdering social leaders every day in Colombia. Corporations like Coca-Cola and Chiquita sponsor paramilitary groups. This is a model that is linked with narco-trafficking and with corporate power.” “Using aid as a political weapon is nothing new,” stated April Knutson of Haiti Justice Committee of Minnesota. “In fact, there is an organization that is very much involved in the Venezuela situat