March 21, 2008

I have never before been moved to tears by a political candidate - not in a good way anyway (frustration, yes).

Today's speech was a honest and convincing act of patriotic heroism that I have seen in a long time. If you are anything less than absolutely full of faith in the possibility of this one man to change our nation for the better than take the time to listen to Senator Obama - make the time, sit down and just listen, listen with your heart. Today he spoke of our national racial history, education for our children, respect for our veterans and teachers, he spoke about making this country once again something to be proud of. It is the bravest act by a politician I have ever seen. It is a most inspiring moment in a presidential candidacy that I have ever heard of.

Please join me in supporting a patriot of the nation we Should live in. The America this Could and Should be.

Sincerely,

from Oregon AFSCME Council 75

Oregon AFSCME has endorsed Barack Obama for President of the United States. The union’s executive board made the endorsement today (March 15) in Portland. 

“The union took action prior to the upcoming Oregon primary because Obama has a history of standing up and fighting for working people,” said Oregon AFSCME Executive Director Ken Allen. “In Illinois, Sen. Obama fought alongside AFSCME to keep vital public services open, including mental hospitals and prisons. He also worked to help organize thousands of workers at Resurrection Hospital, and supported card check recognition for other workers seeking to unionize in their workplace.

“He is a candidate organized labor can proudly stand behind and support.”

Several members of the Oregon AFSCME Executive Board explained their support for Obama.

“I think he’s a uniter, not a divider,” said Becky Steward, President of AFSCME Local 88, which represents Multnomah County employees. “I believe his record better reflects how my members feel in Multnomah County.”

“I believe Obama has a proven track record of fighting for our members,” said Jack Tucker, President of AFSCME Local 2067, which represents City of Salem workers. “I also believe Obama has a much better chance of winning in November against John McCain.”

Dal Ollek, President of AFSCME Local 1724 that represents City of Eugene employees, said Obama brings a message of change.

“We need more collaboration at the national level,” said Ollek. “I believe this vote in support of Obama represents the best choice for the American people.”

read the rest of the article...

For more information from Local 328 People In Action read here...

by Matt Hilton, Local 328 Vice President

On Wednesday March 5th, AFSCME local 328 members voted overwhelmingly to approve proposed changes to the local’s constitution. Members also strongly voted in favor of a new article to the constitution which will govern how local policies are created, reviewed, and implemented.

Local 328 President Mike Bandy said “I'm happy to report that the voting went well yesterday and the Constitutional updates and the one amendment passed with the membership.

“We had a higher than expected member turnout during the three General membership times on Wednesday. This has been an almost three year process, and want to thank everyone for their hard work in making this happen.

“The next step is for Council 75 Director Ken Allen to send the new constitution to the International for approval”

For a detailed description of what the new changes will mean check here.

“Given that a lot of the new changes in the constitution refer to local policy, I thought it was important that we had something in place regarding our local policies that made them as transparent and democratic as possible” said local 328 secretary Jaimie Sorenson, author of the policy amendment.

Besides having a chance to vote on the amendments, members also had a chance to interact with their AFSCME staff representatives and various leaders from the local 328 executive board and steward program. Many members also left sporting AFSCME t-shirts, hats, and tote bags.

Besides a desire to take part in the democratic process, members also showed up with a healthy appetite for the snacks and other food items that were offered. “I was pretty surprised how fast the pizza went at lunch time”, Staff Representative Diane Lovell stated. “We ordered a dozen pizzas and ran out half way thru and had to order a bunch more”.

In addition to the constitutional vote, several members were also nominated to serve as delegates to the 2008 AFSCME international convention coming up this July. Other individuals expressed an interest in becoming shop stewards, serving on the new policy committee, taking part in the PEOPLE in action (PAC) committee, or running for the bargaining team- which will be elected later on this fall to help AFSCME bargain a new contract with OHSU starting in 2009.

“All in all, I was very impressed with members who turned out and made their voices heard. I’d like thank everyone who voted, and I’m quite pleased with how things went”, said Local 328 Vice President Matt Hilton.