Seattle City Council Candidate Forum

Join us for a candidate forum to determine UAW 4121’s endorsement in the Seattle City Council District 4 (U-District) race!  Ethan Hunter, Emily Myers, Joshua Newman, and Shaun Scott will be participating.  At yesterday’s membership meeting, the following timeline and process was developed and approved.

Candidate Forum:
WHEN: Wednesday, February 20th, noon – 1:30 PM
WHERE: To be determined
CO- MODERATORS: Sarah Romano (Epidemiology) & Amzi Jeffs (Math)

PROCESS: The forum will be “interview” format, with only one candidate in the room at a time, each given equal time. Each candidate will have 3 minutes to give an opening statement about why they want to run and why they best will represent UAW members, and 1 minute for a closing statement. At the beginning of the meeting, before the candidate interviews begin, audience members can submit questions on notecards. Moderators will pick a set of questions, and will ask the same questions of each candidate. After candidates answer each question, audience members will be able to ask follow-ups as needed.

Voting:

WHEN: Wednesday, February 20 @ noon – Monday, February 25 @ 7 PM
WHERE: Online

PROCESS: Candidate with highest vote total will be recommended by UAW 4121 for a sole endorsement.  If two candidates are in the lead with less than 1% of total vote separating, UAW 4121 will recommend a dual endorsement.  If 3 or more candidates tie within 1% of the vote, no endorsement recommendation will be made.

Tell Congress to Terminate

Fake “National Emergency”

Today, Trump declared a national emergency to appropriate funds for a border wall, giving the president potentially unlimited power to target immigrants using the military and our tax dollars. Congress could stop this unconstitutional move with a simple majority vote. Please take a minute to send a message telling Congress to reject Trump’s national emergency.

Transit Fare Evasion Reform

Not paying fare on the Link Light Rail can lead to being charged with a criminal misdemeanor and unpaid fines are sold to collection agencies and potentially affect people’s ability to obtain housing. The Transit Riders Union made some progress with King County Metro, but now they are focused on Link Light Rail and other Sound Transit services.  Making transit safer and more accessible for all is a great way to increase ridership, decrease use of single occupancy vehicles, and reduce carbon emissions in Seattle.

If you agree, you can help out by signing their petition to show public support for these changes.  Find more info and the petition here.

Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights

In July 2018, the city of Seattle passed a historic ordinance to ensure that domestic workers – home attendants, nannies, and house cleaners – have access to minimum wage and overtime, breaks, and protection from harassment and discrimination.
With an estimated 30,000 domestic workers in the city of Seattle, the majority of whom are women of color and immigrant women, this ordinance is a critical action towards creating rights and protections for one of the most vulnerable worker populations and rectifying historic exclusion of this important workforce.

Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Network (HIH) joined with a coalition of organizations to support the passage of this ordinance and is now working to ensure full implementation of the protections, by providing educational workshops, webinars and resources to the people who employ domestic workers – such as seniors and people with disabilities who depend on attendant support, and people seeking childcare and house cleaning.

Sign up here to learn more about Hand in Hand’s work!  Or for more information, please contact Stacy Kono at stacy@domesticemployers.org.

Join Casa Latina for Roma Screening

Join Hand in Hand for a screening co-hosted by our partners in the National Domestic Workers Coalition and Casa Latina. This will be a chance to connect with some of the leaders of the Domestic Workers Movement while also experiencing the beauty of this film in a theater. It will also be a chance to learn about concrete ways you can help bring dignity and raise standards for domestic workers in Seattle and across the country.

WHEN: Friday, February 22 @ 5:30 PM

WHERE: Central Cinema,  1411 21st Ave, Seattle, WA 98122

COST: Free (donations of course are welcome!)

REGISTRATION: Sign-up here now and be sure to note if you’ve been invited by Hand in Hand. (Seating is limited.)

MLK Labor Prom

This year, MLK Labor is celebrating Seattle labor prom-style.  Paige Sechrest (Political Science) is nominated for an award – remember to vote for Paige! If you’d like to attend, email uaw4121@uaw4121.org.

WHEN: Saturday, February 23, 6-10 PM
WHERE: IBEW Local 46 in Kent

In solidarity,
Douglas Avella-Castro
Dianne Baumann
Andrea Canini
Monica Cortes Viharo
Meg Drouhard
Dan Hart
Katya Kolesova
Dylan Mayer
Mandy McCourt
Kristin McCowan
Emily Myers
Maria Nelson
Jacob O’Connor
David Parsons
Shua Sanchez
Maddie Smith
Sam Sumpter
Judy Twedt
Jon Witt