(From http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mike-friends-blog/if-henry-ford-could-pay-15-minimum-wage-100-years-ago-so-can-we)
In the State of the Union address tonight, President Obama is going to call for a national minimum wage of $10.10. Then in their response the Republicans will say that’d be a huge disaster that would make the Washington Monument fall over, Mt. Rushmore explode, etc. But here’s what neither Obama or the GOP will tell you…
Join 15 Now to launch a group in your neighborhood to educate, mobilize and help raise the movement for $15/hour to the next level!
Saturday, February 15th 2pm
SEUI 775 Headquarters
215 Columbia Street, Seattle, WA 98144
The Fight for 15 in Seattle has been gathering momentum, but winning $15/hour will require the active participation of thousands.
Big business will not let a $15 minimum wage pass without a fight. They will mobilize their resources to derail, delay, and dilute efforts to end the poverty wages that are the source of their profits.
The only way we can counter the power of Corporate America is by building a massive grassroots campaign with local neighborhood and campus action groups, town hall meetings, mass rallies, and strikes.
By Grace McGee
On Monday, January 20, Seattle’s annual event to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr. drew approximately 5,000 marchers. The entire demonstration was flooded with 15 Now (http://www.15now.org) picket signs demanding a $15/hour minimum wage.
To commemorate the life and legacy of MLK, Jr. 15 Now marched in the annual MLK Day celebration. Our picket signs, banners, and supporters in red 15 Now t-shirts dominated the scene, drawing media attention to this growing movement. Check out some of the articles published on the 15 Now contingent:
KING 5 Video – Supporters of $15 minimum wage at MLK rally
KIRO 7 Video – Hundreds March to Honor MLK, Push for Higher Minimum Wage
Seattle Times – Backers of $15 minimum wage turn out for MLK celebration
Seattle Times – $15 wage campaign joins in M.L. King celebration
My Northwest – Thousands March in Seattle’s Annual MLK Day Celebration
Examiner – Seattlelites march for Martin Luther King and $15 minimum wage
Publicola – Minimum-Wage Committee Member Harrell Joins Sawant in “$15/Hour Contingent” at MLK March
Here is a great video of some of the speeches from our kickoff rally this past Sunday. Kshama Sawant of Socialist Alternative, Dave Freiboth of the King County Labor Council, Socialist Party member of the Irish Parliament Joe Higgins, and Robby Stern of Puget Sound Alliance for Retired Americans.
Thank you Todd Boyle for the video!
“When we win $15 an hour, it will be because we kept up the pressure,” SEIU 775’s Sterling Harders told a cheering crowd, “and that is why SEIU 775 and Working Washington support 15Now.org.”
The kick-off rally for 15 Now started with a roaring chant that declared to big business and Seattle politicians that Seattle workers want $15, and we want it NOW. The rally included a list of prominent speakers, including our new socialist city councilmember Kshama Sawant and Irish Parliament member Joe Higgins, in addition to representatives from organizations that have endorsed the 15 Now campaign, such as SEIU Local 775, SEIU Local 6, PSARA, and Socialist Alternative. Also present to share their stories were immigrant worker/organizers from El Comité and Casa Latina, and workers from hotel, fast food, and airport industries. Below are a few of the media articles generated by this ground-breaking rally:
KIRO 7 – Live Coverage (VIDEO)
KING 5 – (VIDEO) Hundreds Rally in Support of $15 Minimum Wage
KOMO News – Photos from the rally
Supporters Pack Labor Temple at 15Now.org Rally as Minimum Wage Builds Momentum
Maximum Energy at Seattle Rally to Push for $15 Minimum Wage
Join the Fight for $15 Now! Come to the kick-off rally this Sunday January 12 to put Seattle’s establishment on notice: we want $15 and we want it NOW!
Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant along with her Socialist Alternative supporters and union allies have launched the 15now.org website to strengthen the grassroots movement for a $15/hour minimum wage.
by John Nichols, originally published at The Nation
Across the United States this week, new mayors and city council members are being sworn in as the leaders of the cities that elected them in November. The inaugurations of mayors draw local attention—and, in cases like that of New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, a good measure of national attention—but there is generally less focus on the city council members.
Except in Seattle.
by Deborah Wang, originally published at KUOW
Inauguration in Seattle has usually been a low-key affair. But not this year.
Hundreds packed the lobby of Seattle City Hall on Monday. Some came to see Ed Murray, the city’s first openly gay mayor, take the oath of office. But many more came to catch a glimpse of Kshama Sawant, Seattle’s first Socialist City Council member who has attracted international attention.