Fight Back! is circulating the following statement by the United States Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) concerning the heinous and hateful murder of Wadea Al-Fayoume, a Palestinian-American child.

USPCN statement on the hate crime murder of baby Wadea Al-Fayoume

On October 15th, 2023, in Plainfield, Illinois, Hanaan Shahin and her six-year-old son Wadea Al-Fayoume were mercilessly attacked by their landlord, 71-year-old Joseph Czuba, in a hate crime targeting their Palestinian-Muslim identity. Hanaan is in critical condition in the hospital, and we are heartbroken to report that the precious Wadea died after being stabbed 26 times by Czuba. Hannan and Wadea had lived on the ground floor for two years with no previous notable issues.

According to text messages sent to Wadea’s father by his mother Hanna from the hospital, their landlord Czuba had been angry due to the recent coverage of Palestine on the news, leading him to knock on their door and attack them while yelling, “You Muslims must die!” Hanaan was choked and stabbed and escaped to the bathroom to call 911, only to come out of the bathroom and find that Czuba had stabbed Wadea 26 times. “It all happened in seconds,” she texted. Hanaan is currently in critical condition in the hospital, fighting for her life.

USPCN offers its most sincere condolences to Hanaan and Wadea’s father on the loss of their beautiful child, and we are hoping for Hanaan’s full recovery.

We also want to make it clear – this attack on Hanaan and Wadea, leading to Wadea’s murder, was caused by anti-Palestinian sentiment in the U.S. and all over the media this past week. Politicians, both Republicans and Democrats, have helped to embolden racist beliefs against Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims by passing anti-Palestinian resolutions, including our own city council members in Chicago, and uplifting law enforcement’s calls for “heightened awareness” of Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims in U.S. neighborhoods.

Every politician that has spoken up in vicious condemnation of the Palestinian people and their right to self-defense against Israeli war crimes has blood on their hands – from Joe Biden and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker to U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth and U.S. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky. Palestinians have been called uncivilized, terrorists, and animals on news outlets, and that, along with mass condemnation from politicians, has created a hostile, racist atmosphere that led to this intentional and tragic hate crime.

We know that the U.S. is an imperialist state that was built on white supremacy and colonization, and that it is Israel’s biggest ally and funder. As U.S. legislators and the media irresponsibly use racist rhetoric, audiences all over the country are emboldened to target Palestinian and Arab communities, including in so-called blue states like Illinois. This propaganda is no different than Trump’s Make America Great Again Campaign, which brought out white supremacists who en masse attacked Black and other communities of color, leading to mass shootings in churches and the murder of immigrants trying to find safety for themselves and their families.

Wadea’s murder was caused by news outlets like CNN, the New York Times, and others, who have purposely spread fake news about Palestinians to their millions of watchers, in an effort to defend Israel’s active genocide of Palestinians on the ground. Similar to post 9/11, we are seeing a smear campaign being led by the U.S. and the rest of the West, including liberals, against Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims, which is only encouraging violent and de-humanizing hate crimes like the murder of Wadea and the stabbing of his mother.

USPCN demands an end to vicious and racist statements about the Palestinian people from legislators and the media, and calls for the community and allies to be vigilant and organized in defending and protecting our people in the U.S.

Wadea Al-Fayoume, ¡Presente! May he Rest In Power!

Until Liberation and Return,

U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN)

Monday, October 16th, 2023

#PlainfieldIL #Palestine #USPCN

Sellouts Gone

Workers at S & G, a retail bag manufacturer mainly owned by multinational paper giant Smurfit-Stone, had been represented by SEIU Local 25 for many years. Like many other Local 25 members, the S & G workers were not pleased with their union. Local 25 officers were removed from office for misuse of dues money and known for poor representation of the members.

According to Mike Torres, “The last contract was a total sellout. We voted to strike three times. The third time, the ballots mysteriously disappeared, and the Local 25 union representative told the company that the contract was ratified!”

In January of 1998, S & G and other Local 25 units were merged into SEIU Local 1. “For the first time, we felt like the union was with us instead of with the company!” said S & G worker, Kathy Williams.

S & G = Stingy & Greedy

As SEIU Local 1 members, the S & G workers were able to build a united and strong contract campaign. They had regular mass meetings and rallies in front of the plant. Members used buttons and stickers to get their point across: “S & G = Stingy & Greedy,” “I'm ready to strike.” They launched an inside campaign that included an overtime ban. Although not promoted or sanctioned by the union, there were some mysterious disappearances of machine parts from time to time. Local 1 members were encouraged to do their jobs very carefully and take as much extra time as they might need.

The company came into contract negotiations with a bunch of proposed takeaways and a disrespectful attitude. They tried to split off the skilled Maintenance workers at the beginning by offering them a major pay upgrade. But S & G screwed up. They proposed big raises for all the Maintenance guys except one, the Latino who had more seniority than anyone else. These tactics backfired and getting an upgrade for Raymundo became one of the main strike issues!

S & G workers voted a strike authorization and kept up the inside pressure. The company started making some moves at the bargaining table. But it wasn't enough. S & G didn't want to give a decent raise or limit the amount of extreme forced overtime.

“You could be on your way to the time clock to punch out and find a supervisor running behind you to tell you that you had to stay another four hours,” said Debbie Miller. “We have to work 12 hour days three to five days a week, plus Saturdays. You can forget having a social life or seeing your family.”

Strike!

On April 30th, the S & G workers held a one-shift strike, hoping that it would push the company to come up with a decent contract offer. After two weeks and no change from S & G, the SEIU Local 1 members were forced to go out and stay out. “I liked the strike,” said Bounsy Thongsawath, one of the picket captains. “People brought food and helped build a shelter. It was a chance to get to know people, especially from other shifts.”

After four weeks, S & G gave in. They came up with an offer that included moves on all the outstanding issues. Members voted to accept the offer. The settlement includes improvements in pension, disability pay, shift premiums, and vacation. S & G agreed to work with Local 1 to come up with systems to limit forced overtime and to provide upgrades for machine operators and printer/adjusters. Members get a dental plan, the right to have input into health insurance changes, training pay, and a 3% raise. Raymundo got his upgrade!

“We know the fight isn't over,” says Steve Bill. “We have to keep the pressure up if we want the upgrades and a fair overtime system.” Local 1 SEIU members will also have to work hard to enforce the new contract when the bosses violate it.

#PlainfieldIL #News #SEIU #strike #seiuLocal25 #seiuLocal1 #sellout