March Membership Meeting (International Solidarity) // Housing Survey // Solidarity with Ukrainian Communities

Solidarity with Ukrainian Communities

We are deeply horrified by the Russian government’s invasion of Ukraine and the impacts this war has on Ukrainian communities and the people of Russia. Across the world, people are rising in protest and working to support refugees seeking asylum. And of course, as these events unfold, there is also ongoing violence in Palestine, Syria, Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Bosnia, and Kashmir; anti-trans legislation and ongoing violence against Black people in the United States; and more.

These are all incredibly difficult times – particularly in the midst of an ongoing global pandemic – but with a union, none of us has to deal with them alone. Below find some additional information and resources about how you can get support and take action in the coming week:

• For ASEs and Postdocs who are in Ukraine, Russia, or surrounding areas, please get in touch with the International Solidarity Working Group intl-workgroup@uaw4121.org if you are in need of support.
• Sign onto this letter from the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network and other local immigrant and refugee groups calling on the State Legislature to fully fund refugee resettlement in Washington.
• Join the Ukrainian Association of Washington State for a rally on Saturday at 3pm at Seattle Center.
• Volunteer with refugee resettlement organizations in Washington State, such as Lutheran Community Services Northwest.
• Both ASE and Postdoc contracts entitle us to strong mental health coverage, as well as options for leaves and personal days. Students can access care through Hall Health/Counseling Center (as well as providers around the region), and Postdocs have access to CareLink. If you have any questions or issues accessing care or needed time off, email contractenforcement@uaw4121.org.
• Check out a number of ways you can support Black and LGBTQ+ Ukrainian refugees here.

Membership Meeting:
International Solidarity Working Group

As a reminder, our next membership meeting will be Thursday 3/10 from 5-6pm via Zoom. At this month’s membership meeting, members from the International Solidarity Working Group will talk about how building power and community through our union intersects with issues that international scholars often navigate as well as global issues more broadly.

To access the link and/or call-in number, please fill out this short form. All members in good standing are encouraged to attend, and anyone who is not yet a member can sign up here beforehand. Everyone is encouraged to login five minutes earlier to help expedite the check-in process. The agenda for the meeting is as follows:

• Approve agenda
• Approve minutes
• Organizing updates
• Housing Justice Survey
• International Solidarity Working Group
• Constitutional Convention
• Adjourn

Any member who would like to propose additional agenda items or submit materials for the meeting is welcome to email uaw4121@uaw4121.org by 5pm on Wednesday, February 9th. All members in good standing are encouraged to attend, and anyone who is not yet a member can sign up here beforehand. For more information about how the meeting will be structured and how you can use Zoom’s features to participate, check out this page on our website.

Help Build Power for Housing Justice

​​Please CLICK HERE to share your housing experiences!

We live in a region experiencing huge issues of housing insecurity and unaffordability, and these issues have disproportionate impacts on marginalized groups – especially folks who are BIPOC, queer, trans, disabled, chronically ill, caregivers, international scholars, and immigrants. To address these issues, our Housing Justice Working Group is developing a housing campaign oriented around four core pillars. Namely, we believe that ASEs and Postdocs deserve:

1. A fair say in our housing conditions and the ability to effectively enforce our rights (POWER)
2. Housing that is affordable, convenient to where we work, and free from discrimination and harassment (ACCESSIBILITY)
3. Lower and more stable rents, income that meets housing costs, and freedom from shadow evictions (STABILITY)
4. Emotional and physical safety, whether it’s regarding our landlords, co-habitants, neighborhoods, buildings, or campus housing (SAFETY)

The issues we’re facing are huge structural problems, and in order to restructure the housing system to work for us, we must build power through collective action. As an initial step, the Housing Justice Workgroup has developed this survey to gather members’ experiences. The more people who participate, the better we’ll be able to demonstrate that these issues are widely felt, and that we’re unified behind the urgent need to address them.

For more information and to get involved with this ongoing work, email housing-justice@uaw4121.org!