theintercept--2020-06-17--The Coronavirus Pandemic and Police Violence Have Reignited the Fight Against Toxic Racism

Sometimes known as the “ father of environmental justice , ” Robert Bullard has been talking , writing , and teaching about the disproportionate effects of pollution on people of color for more than four decades .
In 1999 , he was part of a group of almost 300 black activists who came together to address racial disparities in health and exposure to environmental contamination .
The National Black Environmental Justice Network , as it came to be called , demanded attention to the environmental problems that were disproportionately affecting communities of color .
But the organization disbanded after the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Damu Smith , in 2005 .
Now , as both the coronavirus pandemic and police violence are devastating black communities around the country , 15 organizations along with some of the scholars and activists who were members of the original group have relaunched the National Black Environmental Justice Network .
The Intercept spoke to Bullard about his more than 40-year campaign against environmental racism , why pollution is inextricably linked to police violence , and how the Biden campaign can reach him and other members of the reinvigorated group if they want some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ edited for length and clarity .
Sharon Lerner : Why are you restarting the National Black Environmental Justice Network now ?
Robert Bullard : The network was first founded at a time when black communities were under assault from pollution and environmental degradation .
Industry was allowed to have permits that encircled black communities with polluting plants .
And environmental justice leaders came together to end the toxic terror .
Damu Smith was the founder — he was an organizer ’ s organizer .
And we were making headway .
But after he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of our momentum .
Fast forward to 2020 , and political oppression , black voter suppression , and environmental racism are converging and hitting us at the same time .
And not only do we still have to fight this same fight against toxic racism and the dumping of poison on black people , but in some ways that ’ s getting worse .
We find ourselves confronting the fast-tracking of permits and the rolling-back and gutting of environmental laws that have been on the books to provide some safeguards .
And now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
SL : I think it ’ s now widely understood that the coronavirus is a racial justice issue .
But can you explain why the virus is also an environmental justice issue ?
RB : Covid is a health issue .
And health disparities are about racial and environmental justice .
Pollution is disproportionately located where poor and black people are .
Black people are 79 percent more likely than whites to live in neighborhoods with toxic industrial pollution .
They ’ re far more likely to live near a dirty , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ die of asthma at 10 times the rate of white children .
We knew this before the Harvard study , which showed a big relationship between PM2.5 air pollution and Covid-19 .
Black communities were already sicker and had less access to health care .
You tell me your zip code , and I can tell you how healthy you are .
And now the Covid-19 hotspots are where the pollution is .
You don ’ t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out why .
If you have areas with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people , people who have been made sick by racism , zoning , and permitting , and you have lots of diabetes , heart disease , and kidney disease there , the virus is going to seek that out .
The coronavirus is like a heat-seeking missile zeroing in on the most vulnerable .
When you look at redlining and discriminatory zoning patterns that resulted in the pollution of black communities , it ’ s those same communities where we ’ ve been fighting against environmental racism for years that are now getting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Covid is lining up with the redlining maps from the 1930s .
SL : What can the network do about that ?
RB : It ’ s not enough to give people health insurance .
If you don ’ t deal with the underlying conditions of why people are sicker , then health insurance is only going partway .
Whether we can ’ t breathe because of toxic pollution or policing , it ’ s the same systemic racism that is killing us .
And that ’ s what we want to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had a national organization to deal with environmental justice .
So our plan is to come up with an environmental justice agenda for Black America .
And when we say “ environment , ” we ’ re not just talking about trees and wetlands , we ’ re talking about all those things that make our communities healthy : transportation , energy , housing , sustainability , resilience , and disaster response .
We ’ re going to create an agenda that will include climate , environment , health , policing , education @ @ @ @ @ @ @ housing , poverty , jobs , economic development , civil rights enforcement , and food security .
SL : How did you get into this work ?
RB : My wife came home one day and said , “ I just sued the state of Texas , and I have to go to court in 10 days.
” She needed a map of where all the incinerators and garbage dumps were located .
And I am a trained sociologist ; my area was housing discrimination and segregation .
So I used the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ housing to locate all the landfills and incinerators .
And when I did , I found that , in Houston , from the 1930s until 1978 , five out of five city-owned landfills , three out of four privately owned landfills , and six out of eight city-owned incinerators were located in black communities .
Eighty-two percent of all the garbage that was being dumped in the city was being dumped in black neighborhoods , even though black people made up only 25 percent of the population .
This was 1979 , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asked for help with the case .
But when we told them where the garbage was being dumped , they said , “ Isn ’ t that where the garbage is supposed to be dumped ?
” No one would say that today .
And then we went to the NAACP , and they said , “ We don ’ t work on environmental issues.
” SL : What are some of the environmental justice victories that you hold up to yourself and others for inspiration ?
RB : In 1989 , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Louisiana energy services company that was proposing to build the nation ’ s first privately owned uranium enrichment plant .
We didn ’ t need any more enriched uranium .
And they were talking about placing the plant between two black communities in rural Louisiana .
Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund [ which changed its name to Earthjustice in 1997 ] filed suit to stop the permit .
My job was to show the impact of this plant on the community .
The case went to trial in 1995 — one year after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ signed by [ President Bill ] Clinton .
This was the first major case that used the National Environmental Policy Act , and it said they had to include an environmental justice analysis .
We showed the company was engaged in a sham process .
The company spent $ 35 million on the case .
We defeated it .
And that land is still the hands of people today .
Another victory is the fact that we finally have the terms “ environmental justice ” and “ environmental racism ” rolling off of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ long ago , environmental and conservation groups would not use those terms and didn ’ t acknowledge race .
It took 25 years for the environmental folks and the civil rights folks to understand we have converging issues called environmental justice .
SL : And yet , for many black communities , environmental problems are still worsening .
RB : Yes .
Louisiana is still a hotbed of environmental racism .
Look at Mossville , a town founded by former slaves that is now encircled by all kinds of polluting plants .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ St. John that , in addition to dealing with the highest levels of air pollution , is now also struggling with Covid .
And the Alabama Black Belt , where some communities don ’ t have sanitation systems , and there are frequent sewer overflows .
It ’ s like in the third world .
The recent rollbacks of environmental laws affect everyone .
There ’ s no black , Hispanic , or white air .
But the rollbacks disproportionately hit people living next to the fenceline — and these are disproportionately people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rollbacks and dismantling the Clean Air Act , that ’ s a recipe for disaster for black communities .
It ’ s dozens of plants pumping out all kinds of pollution .
And if you ’ re going to gut NEPA , it ’ s like open season for granting permits .
And we all know where they ’ re going to go : to black and brown communities .
SL : Will you be voting for Biden ?
SL : How hopeful are you that a Democratic administration will address the environmental @ @ @ @ @ @ @ discussing ?
RB : Black people in South Carolina dragged Biden across the finish line .
And now the Biden team has come up with his “ Lift Every Voice ” plan for Black America .
Every black person in America knows the words to “ Lift Every Voice and Sing.
” And it ’ s like , OK , you picked a good theme song .
Now let ’ s actually lift every voice and include people and organizations that have been doing the work .
We have experts and groups in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mobilizing for years .
We are available .
We have phones .
We have email .
We know how to Zoom .
So there is no excuse for those who are out there and claim to want to hear from us not to contact us and have us at those tables .

Sometimes known as the “father of environmental justice,” Robert Bullard has been talking, writing, and teaching about the disproportionate effects of pollution on people of color for more than four decades. In 1999, he was part of a group of almost 300 black activists who came together to address racial disparities in health and exposure to environmental contamination. The National Black Environmental Justice Network, as it came to be called, demanded attention to the environmental problems that were disproportionately affecting communities of color. But the organization disbanded after the death of its first executive director, Damu Smith, in 2005.
Now, as both the coronavirus pandemic and police violence are devastating black communities around the country, 15 organizations along with some of the scholars and activists who were members of the original group have relaunched the National Black Environmental Justice Network. The Intercept spoke to Bullard about his more than 40-year campaign against environmental racism, why pollution is inextricably linked to police violence, and how the Biden campaign can reach him and other members of the reinvigorated group if they want some free advice. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Why are you restarting the National Black Environmental Justice Network now?
The network was first founded at a time when black communities were under assault from pollution and environmental degradation. Industry was allowed to have permits that encircled black communities with polluting plants. And environmental justice leaders came together to end the toxic terror. Damu Smith was the founder — he was an organizer’s organizer. And we were making headway. But after he passed, we lost a little bit of our momentum.
“You tell me your zip code, and I can tell you how healthy you are.”
Fast forward to 2020, and political oppression, black voter suppression, and environmental racism are converging and hitting us at the same time. And not only do we still have to fight this same fight against toxic racism and the dumping of poison on black people, but in some ways that’s getting worse. We find ourselves confronting the fast-tracking of permits and the rolling-back and gutting of environmental laws that have been on the books to provide some safeguards. And now we also find ourselves in a pandemic.
I think it’s now widely understood that the coronavirus is a racial justice issue. But can you explain why the virus is also an environmental justice issue?
Covid is a health issue. And health disparities are about racial and environmental justice. Pollution is disproportionately located where poor and black people are. Black people are 79 percent more likely than whites to live in neighborhoods with toxic industrial pollution. They’re far more likely to live near a dirty, coal-fired power plant. And black children die of asthma at 10 times the rate of white children. We knew this before the Harvard study, which showed a big relationship between PM2.5 air pollution and Covid-19. Black communities were already sicker and had less access to health care. You tell me your zip code, and I can tell you how healthy you are.
And now the Covid-19 hotspots are where the pollution is. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out why. If you have areas with the highest concentration of pollution and sick people, people who have been made sick by racism, zoning, and permitting, and you have lots of diabetes, heart disease, and kidney disease there, the virus is going to seek that out. The coronavirus is like a heat-seeking missile zeroing in on the most vulnerable. When you look at redlining and discriminatory zoning patterns that resulted in the pollution of black communities, it’s those same communities where we’ve been fighting against environmental racism for years that are now getting hit hard by Covid. The footprint for Covid is lining up with the redlining maps from the 1930s.
“The coronavirus is like a heat-seeking missile zeroing in on the most vulnerable.”
What can the network do about that?
It’s not enough to give people health insurance. If you don’t deal with the underlying conditions of why people are sicker, then health insurance is only going partway. Whether we can’t breathe because of toxic pollution or policing, it’s the same systemic racism that is killing us. And that’s what we want to address.
Black people haven’t had a national organization to deal with environmental justice. So our plan is to come up with an environmental justice agenda for Black America. And when we say “environment,” we’re not just talking about trees and wetlands, we’re talking about all those things that make our communities healthy: transportation, energy, housing, sustainability, resilience, and disaster response. We’re going to create an agenda that will include climate, environment, health, policing, education, transportation, clean energy, affordable housing, poverty, jobs, economic development, civil rights enforcement, and food security.
How did you get into this work?
My wife came home one day and said, “I just sued the state of Texas, and I have to go to court in 10 days.” She needed a map of where all the incinerators and garbage dumps were located. And I am a trained sociologist; my area was housing discrimination and segregation. So I used the same mapping techniques and tools I used with housing to locate all the landfills and incinerators. And when I did, I found that, in Houston, from the 1930s until 1978, five out of five city-owned landfills, three out of four privately owned landfills, and six out of eight city-owned incinerators were located in black communities. Eighty-two percent of all the garbage that was being dumped in the city was being dumped in black neighborhoods, even though black people made up only 25 percent of the population.
This was 1979, and we went to the environmental groups and asked for help with the case. But when we told them where the garbage was being dumped, they said, “Isn’t that where the garbage is supposed to be dumped?” No one would say that today. And then we went to the NAACP, and they said, “We don’t work on environmental issues.”
What are some of the environmental justice victories that you hold up to yourself and others for inspiration?
In 1989, I got involved in the case of a Louisiana energy services company that was proposing to build the nation’s first privately owned uranium enrichment plant. We didn’t need any more enriched uranium. And they were talking about placing the plant between two black communities in rural Louisiana. Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund [which changed its name to Earthjustice in 1997] filed suit to stop the permit. My job was to show the impact of this plant on the community. The case went to trial in 1995 — one year after the Executive Order on Environmental Justice was signed by [President Bill] Clinton. This was the first major case that used the National Environmental Policy Act, and it said they had to include an environmental justice analysis. We showed the company was engaged in a sham process. The company spent $35 million on the case. We defeated it. And that land is still the hands of people today.
Another victory is the fact that we finally have the terms “environmental justice” and “environmental racism” rolling off of people’s lips. Not that long ago, environmental and conservation groups would not use those terms and didn’t acknowledge race. It took 25 years for the environmental folks and the civil rights folks to understand we have converging issues called environmental justice.
And yet, for many black communities, environmental problems are still worsening.
Yes. Louisiana is still a hotbed of environmental racism. Look at Mossville, a town founded by former slaves that is now encircled by all kinds of polluting plants. And then there’s a community in St. John that, in addition to dealing with the highest levels of air pollution, is now also struggling with Covid. And the Alabama Black Belt, where some communities don’t have sanitation systems, and there are frequent sewer overflows. It’s like in the third world.
The recent rollbacks of environmental laws affect everyone. There’s no black, Hispanic, or white air. But the rollbacks disproportionately hit people living next to the fenceline — and these are disproportionately people of color. When we talk about rollbacks and dismantling the Clean Air Act, that’s a recipe for disaster for black communities. It’s dozens of plants pumping out all kinds of pollution. And if you’re going to gut NEPA, it’s like open season for granting permits. And we all know where they’re going to go: to black and brown communities.
Will you be voting for Biden?
I’m a lifetime Democrat. I always vote Democrat.
How hopeful are you that a Democratic administration will address the environmental and racial problems we’ve been discussing?
Black people in South Carolina dragged Biden across the finish line. And now the Biden team has come up with his “Lift Every Voice” plan for Black America. Every black person in America knows the words to “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” And it’s like, OK, you picked a good theme song. Now let’s actually lift every voice and include people and organizations that have been doing the work. We have experts and groups in our network that have been doing the mobilizing for years. We are available. We have phones. We have email. We know how to Zoom. So there is no excuse for those who are out there and claim to want to hear from us not to contact us and have us at those tables.


theintercept--2020-06-17--Democrat Facing Progressive Primary Challenge Signs Letter Supporting Cuts to Social Security — Then

Democrat Facing Progressive Primary Challenge Signs Letter Supporting Cuts to Social Security — Then Quietly Walks It Back at Home

But Kilmer , who ’ s facing a primary challenge in August from progressive Rebecca Parson in Washington ’ s 6th Congressional District , which covers most of Tacoma , has been trying to walk back his support for the letter and the attack on Social Security in letters to constituents who had contacted him with concerns about the policy recommendation .
The congressman wrote that he has been and will continue to be a “ vocal opponent of efforts to undermine existing Social Security benefits , ” stressing that he ’ s not a co-sponsor of the TRUST Act @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , according to a copy obtained by The Intercept .
He also highlighted his support for the Social Security 2100 Act , which would strengthen and expand the program ’ s benefits .
The idea of cutting Social Security benefits is deeply unpopular among Americans , and has increasingly become a political liability , most recently for former Vice President Joe Biden during his Democratic presidential primary race against Sen. Bernie Sanders .
A 2019 poll on the issue finds that a vast majority of the public opposes cuts to the program , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ percent of people would support candidates who want to expand the New Deal-era program .
In the letter , which was addressed to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy , lawmakers argued that upcoming coronavirus relief legislation should include budget reforms to confront the economic fallout of the pandemic .
The lawmakers also asked leadership to address the “ pressing issue of the national debt.
” One of their policy recommendations — Sen. Mitt Romney ’ s TRUST Act — has been described as “ a plot to gut Social @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Derek Kilmer , chair of the corporate-friendly New Democrat Coalition , was among the 30 House Democrats who joined Republicans in signing a letter calling for cuts to Social Security benefits earlier this month .
The TRUST Act , which Romney introduced last October , would create congressional “ Rescue Committees ” tasked with writing legislation providing 75 years of solvency for federal trust funds , which subsidize programs like Social Security , Medicare , highways and mass transit , and government pensions .
The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saying it would “ set up a process that puts benefits at risk , forcing millions of older Americans onto a pathway toward poverty.
” Other advocacy groups , like Social Security Works and Puget Sound Advocates for Retirement Action , or PSARA , have also been fighting the Romney proposal , mounting an escalating pressure campaign on the lawmakers .
Social Security Works has been reaching out to every member of Congress who signed onto the letter asking them to oppose cuts , and plans to run billboards against Democratic Rep. Stephanie @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the executive director .
The group celebrated Kilmer ’ s statement supporting the expansion of benefits , saying the other 59 members should follow his lead .
“ It was really with an eye toward the solvency of these other trust funds that I signed onto this letter , ” Kilmer wrote , citing the Highway Trust Fund , which gets money from a federal fuel tax , as an example of the kind of program he had in mind .
“ It was through this lens that I originally viewed the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ However , as I review that letter today through your lens , I recognize the valid concerns you raised .
Please know that my intent was not — and will not be — to impact these vital earned benefit programs.
” “ There are 3 options : Rep. Kilmer didn ’ t read the letter he signed , he doesn ’ t know about the history of bipartisan efforts to cut Social Security and Medicare , or he ’ s trying to have his cake and eat it , too : publicly praising @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it , ” Parson told The Intercept .
“ Whether he signed the letter due to negligence , ignorance , or doublespeak , it ’ s clear he shouldn ’ t be representing Washington ’ s 6th District , where 20 percent of our residents are over 65.
” Parson , a 35-year-old organizer and member of the Democratic Socialists of America , is running in a reliably blue district on an ambitious platform that includes Medicare for All , the Green New Deal , national rent control , and a range of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t hard , ” she added .
“ No increases in the retirement age .
No so-called ‘ chained-CPI.
’ ” — an indexing measure that could slow the rate at which benefits increase — “ No reducing the money our people need to survive .
No joining with conservatives to undermine the greatest anti-poverty program in our history .
That ’ s unacceptable to the grandmother in Tacoma I spoke with who ’ s living on $ 750 a month and paying $ 650 in rent , and it ’ s unacceptable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In a statement , Kilmer ’ s campaign reiterated his support for legislation that would expand the program .
“ He has opposed efforts to privatize Social Security and to cut benefits his entire time in office , ” wrote political director Colin McCann .
“ Because he has been a consistent champion for working people and retirees and their ability to live with dignity , Derek Kilmer is the only candidate in this race endorsed by the Washington State Labor Council.
” Though the pandemic forced Parson to suspend canvassing and pivot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fundraising has increased in the previous quarter .
Kilmer , an incumbent of seven years , has a significant fundraising advantage with $ 3.5 million cash on hand .
Parson ’ s total fundraising comes out to a bit over $ 122,000 — more than $ 44,000 of it raised in the first quarter — which is more than Kilmer ’ s Democratic challengers raised in 2014 , 2016 , and 2018 combined .

Washington Rep. Derek Kilmer, chair of the corporate-friendly New Democrat Coalition, was among the 30 House Democrats who joined Republicans in signing a letter calling for cuts to Social Security benefits earlier this month.
In the letter, which was addressed to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, lawmakers argued that upcoming coronavirus relief legislation should include budget reforms to confront the economic fallout of the pandemic. The lawmakers also asked leadership to address the “pressing issue of the national debt.” One of their policy recommendations — Sen. Mitt Romney’s TRUST Act — has been described as “a plot to gut Social Security behind closed doors.”
The idea of cutting Social Security benefits is deeply unpopular among Americans, and has increasingly become a political liability, most recently for former Vice President Joe Biden during his Democratic presidential primary race against Sen. Bernie Sanders. A 2019 poll on the issue finds that a vast majority of the public opposes cuts to the program, while a 2018 poll finds that 66 percent of people would support candidates who want to expand the New Deal-era program.
But Kilmer, who’s facing a primary challenge in August from progressive Rebecca Parson in Washington’s 6th Congressional District, which covers most of Tacoma, has been trying to walk back his support for the letter and the attack on Social Security in letters to constituents who had contacted him with concerns about the policy recommendation. The congressman wrote that he has been and will continue to be a “vocal opponent of efforts to undermine existing Social Security benefits,” stressing that he’s not a co-sponsor of the TRUST Act and does not intend to co-sponsor it, according to a copy obtained by The Intercept. He also highlighted his support for the Social Security 2100 Act, which would strengthen and expand the program’s benefits.
The TRUST Act, which Romney introduced last October, would create congressional “Rescue Committees” tasked with writing legislation providing 75 years of solvency for federal trust funds, which subsidize programs like Social Security, Medicare, highways and mass transit, and government pensions. The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare criticized the proposal at the time, saying it would “set up a process that puts benefits at risk, forcing millions of older Americans onto a pathway toward poverty.”
Other advocacy groups, like Social Security Works and Puget Sound Advocates for Retirement Action, or PSARA, have also been fighting the Romney proposal, mounting an escalating pressure campaign on the lawmakers. Social Security Works has been reaching out to every member of Congress who signed onto the letter asking them to oppose cuts, and plans to run billboards against Democratic Rep. Stephanie Murphy of Florida, said Alex Lawson, the executive director. The group celebrated Kilmer’s statement supporting the expansion of benefits, saying the other 59 members should follow his lead.
“It was really with an eye toward the solvency of these other trust funds that I signed onto this letter,” Kilmer wrote, citing the Highway Trust Fund, which gets money from a federal fuel tax, as an example of the kind of program he had in mind. “It was through this lens that I originally viewed the intent of the letter I signed. However, as I review that letter today through your lens, I recognize the valid concerns you raised. Please know that my intent was not — and will not be — to impact these vital earned benefit programs.”
His primary opponent doesn’t buy it.
“There are 3 options: Rep. Kilmer didn’t read the letter he signed, he doesn’t know about the history of bipartisan efforts to cut Social Security and Medicare, or he’s trying to have his cake and eat it, too: publicly praising Social Security while privately trying to cut it,” Parson told The Intercept. “Whether he signed the letter due to negligence, ignorance, or doublespeak, it’s clear he shouldn’t be representing Washington’s 6th District, where 20 percent of our residents are over 65.”
Parson, a 35-year-old organizer and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, is running in a reliably blue district on an ambitious platform that includes Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, national rent control, and a range of pro-labor policies.
“This isn’t hard,” she added. “No increases in the retirement age. No so-called ‘chained-CPI.’” — an indexing measure that could slow the rate at which benefits increase — “No reducing the money our people need to survive. No joining with conservatives to undermine the greatest anti-poverty program in our history. That’s unacceptable to the grandmother in Tacoma I spoke with who’s living on $750 a month and paying $650 in rent, and it’s unacceptable to all seniors in the district.”
In a statement, Kilmer’s campaign reiterated his support for legislation that would expand the program. “He has opposed efforts to privatize Social Security and to cut benefits his entire time in office,” wrote political director Colin McCann. “Because he has been a consistent champion for working people and retirees and their ability to live with dignity, Derek Kilmer is the only candidate in this race endorsed by the Washington State Labor Council.”
Though the pandemic forced Parson to suspend canvassing and pivot to a completely digital campaign, her fundraising has increased in the previous quarter. Kilmer, an incumbent of seven years, has a significant fundraising advantage with $3.5 million cash on hand. Parson’s total fundraising comes out to a bit over $122,000 — more than $44,000 of it raised in the first quarter — which is more than Kilmer’s Democratic challengers raised in 2014, 2016, and 2018 combined.


theintercept--2020-06-17--Get on the Line: White Allies and Changing Tactics at Atlanta Rayshard Brooks Protests

the front !
Get on the line !
” Devin-Barrington Ward stood in the middle of the right lane of southbound I-75/85 at dusk last Saturday night with a bullhorn in hand , and he was not playing .
“ If you are not going to put your body on the line for black lives , go home !
Make up for the sins of your ancestors !
” I smirked .
I admit it .
It was absurd to hear .
Looking at him , I think he thought it was a bit nuts too .
But we ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Standing in the middle of the Downtown Connector in Atlanta , Georgia , a highway that usually carries about 300,000 cars a day , is also patently absurd .
“ That shit Devin said was really was fucked up and ridiculous , ” said Rev .
Kim Jackson , an episcopal priest in Atlanta serving as a protest chaplain .
“ But the fact that they didn ’ t gas the shit out of those white kids , or come at them with batons and rubber bullets , well , it does seem @ @ @ @ @ @ @ folk are treated better.
” This idea of a “ white shield ” is gaining currency among activists , who want to demonstrate that police are more deferential than violent when facing white people .
So far , police seem to be confirming that thesis .
Few things freak out Georgia ’ s powers-that-be more than disrupting the connector .
The urban planning of the connector is legendarily terrible ( and came at the cost of black neighborhoods in Atlanta ) .
It is the fifth-most congested corridor in America .
A snarl @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 50 miles in every direction .
The connector is Atlanta ’ s neck .
Demonstrators knelt on it for two hours .
The night before , a traffic cop had killed Rayshard Brooks in the drive-thru of a Wendy ’ s just east of the highway .
After a struggle , Officer Garrett Rolfe shot Brooks in the back three times after Brooks ran from a DUI arrest with a cop ’ s Taser in his hand .
Rolfe was fired and the police chief resigned and it didn ’ t matter .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ an uproar over disparate use of force , an Atlanta cop who almost certainly had been staring at Black Lives Matter protests for two weeks shot a black man in the back .
It made a farce of the de-escalation and the return to relative calm over the previous week .
It pulled the pin on a grenade .
It beggared restraint .
About 100 young white people stood in front of a line of cars , arms locked , waiting for police to arrest them .
On the northbound side , state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cars ready to charge .
Traffic backed up for miles in both directions .
And in the middle of this standoff lay a quarter-mile of empty road like a street party , a placid bubble where people skateboarded and rode bicycles .
“ White allyship means showing up even when I ’ m exhausted .
Because as exhausted as I feel , it doesn ’ t come close to what my Black brothers and sisters must feel right now , ” said Hannah Hill , a manager at the affordable housing startup PadSplit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ frequent protest chaplain .
“ It means that when I do show up , for the first time in my life , I have to realize I ’ m not in charge .
I have to recognize that I don ’ t know what ’ s right for these Black protesters .
Instead , I step back — or to the front of the line if asked — and allow them to direct me .
To cede my own power and cultural supremacy to those leaders around me .
It ’ s supporting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s not about me.
” It ’ s not the first time people have taken over a highway here .
A handful of protesters briefly shut down the connector in 2014 as the city erupted in grief over the police shooting death of Michael Brown .
The next day , I watched more state troopers than one would think it possible to summon carefully prevent about 10,000 protesters from repeating the move .
Demonstrators instead merrily led cops up and down Atlanta ’ s downtown streets late into the night , though @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the last two weeks .
Georgia ’ s conservative legislators subsequently tried and failed to make blocking a highway in protest a felony offense .
Saturday night , hundreds of people spilled onto the highway after hours of street protest in front of the Wendy ’ s .
Protest chaplains had walked back demonstrators who tried to take the overpass earlier in the day , largely because there weren ’ t enough people to do it safely , Jackson said .
Police had also used force once earlier that day , when protesters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pull out of the parking lot of a liquor store across the street from the Wendy ’ s .
Black bloc demonstrators started throwing bottles of water — and urine — at the cops .
After someone hit a cop with a thrown skateboard , police let loose with ordinance — tear gas and a flash-bang grenade .
As with the highway stunt , the crowd bellowing “ Fuck 12 ” ( local slang for cops ) was multiracial , though most of the parking lot projectiles came from white rioters from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with how to incorporate white help to address racism .
It ’ s clear that discrimination can not be solved without — as Chris Rock put it — nicer white people .
An end to white supremacy requires white people to stop imposing it .
On the other hand , black activists loathe the idea of surrendering their agency to white people in pursuit of racial equity , because it can be misused .
Just as police started to clear the protest from the highway , vandals set the Wendy ’ s on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ started , to see a skinny young white guy wearing black bloc anonymizing gear gingerly step through a broken plate glass window of the restaurant to the gas station parking lot next door .
He was immediately confronted by four rugged young black men , all pissed off — at him .
“ You don ’ t fucking live around here , ” one man said to him , inches from his face .
The black bloc guy looked petrified .
“ They are going to blame us for that.
” The group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they wanted to let him walk , feed him to the cops , or just beat him like a rug .
Then a fire truck and a sheriff ’ s vehicle rolled up behind them .
People — black and white — knelt in the street to block their path .
The neighborhood guys walked away ; the white guy ran into the street .
One of the men looked down onto a silly little patch of lawn carved out of the parking lot concrete , picked up an apple-sized rock , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ side window of the patrol car .
It ’ s one thing if someone from out of town does damage .
Another if the locals do it .
It ’ s one thing if a white person commits an act of arson in the name of black lives .
Another if a black person does it .
Which may actually be the point of all of this .
Slowly , amid a hail of rocks , the crowd backed the fire truck and the police car up University Avenue .
Cellphone dead , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Police have a $ 10,000 reward for tips leading to the arrest of someone caught on camera torching the Wendy ’ s .
The picture is of someone who looks like a white woman .
Jackson , the reverend , said she saw the entire event , and that a multiracial group started the fire , including the young man I had seen .
As I walked the half-mile back to my car , I passed by a police major helping coordinate the SWAT team prepping out of sight .
He and I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ homelessness and mental illness for the downtown business district .
Out of sight of the crowds , after a long night , I walked up to him and unloaded .
“ They think the chief resigning is going to change anything ?
That ’ s the worst thing that could have happened , ” I half screamed .
“ Who ’ s going to be the interim ?
Someone who doesn ’ t have enough institutional authority to change anything .
Where the fuck is the mayor !
Of all the shitty timing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Your guy just torched two weeks of protests .
Things were starting to calm down , and we were starting to talk about reforms .
What the fuck are we supposed to do now ?
” “ Well , ” he said , “ the leaders will have to come together , settle on a list of demands , and meet with the mayor.
” All that day , as I listened to people , it was clear that a dozen people were trying to lead .
Richard Rose , the head of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crowd and gave a press conference , and was shouted down by the street .
A branch of Black Hebrew Israelites — a Southern Poverty Law Center-certified hate group — had a loudspeaker-fueled diatribe going through most of the day .
Mary Hooks from Black Lives Matter competed with people from the Rainbow-PUSH Coalition , from Southerners on New Ground , from city agencies , from local nonprofits and from groups I had never heard of .
Leadership in the street meant having a bullhorn and a stepladder .
“ Man , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ All of this is organic .
It ’ s just happening .
There is no one to negotiate with , because anyone who claimed to have the authority to speak for the street would be lying and everyone knows it.
” His eyebrow arched .
“ So , it ’ s just looting and rioting ” he said .
“ Well , I ’ ll give you rioting , ” I replied .
“ No one is going to steal anything around here.
” “ It ’ s probably a good @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” he said .
“ We ’ re about to gas the shit out it .
”

“White allies to the front! Get on the line!”
Devin-Barrington Ward stood in the middle of the right lane of southbound I-75/85 at dusk last Saturday night with a bullhorn in hand, and he was not playing. “If you are not going to put your body on the line for black lives, go home! Make up for the sins of your ancestors!”
I smirked. I admit it. It was absurd to hear. Looking at him, I think he thought it was a bit nuts too. But we’re all a little crazy now. Standing in the middle of the Downtown Connector in Atlanta, Georgia, a highway that usually carries about 300,000 cars a day, is also patently absurd.
“That shit Devin said was really was fucked up and ridiculous,” said Rev. Kim Jackson, an episcopal priest in Atlanta serving as a protest chaplain. “But the fact that they didn’t gas the shit out of those white kids, or come at them with batons and rubber bullets, well, it does seem to reinforce the whole point that white folk are treated better.”
This idea of a “white shield” is gaining currency among activists, who want to demonstrate that police are more deferential than violent when facing white people. So far, police seem to be confirming that thesis.
Few things freak out Georgia’s powers-that-be more than disrupting the connector. The urban planning of the connector is legendarily terrible (and came at the cost of black neighborhoods in Atlanta). It is the fifth-most congested corridor in America. A snarl on the connector affects traffic patterns for 50 miles in every direction.
The connector is Atlanta’s neck. Demonstrators knelt on it for two hours.
The night before, a traffic cop had killed Rayshard Brooks in the drive-thru of a Wendy’s just east of the highway. After a struggle, Officer Garrett Rolfe shot Brooks in the back three times after Brooks ran from a DUI arrest with a cop’s Taser in his hand.
Rolfe was fired and the police chief resigned and it didn’t matter. With the city and the country in an uproar over disparate use of force, an Atlanta cop who almost certainly had been staring at Black Lives Matter protests for two weeks shot a black man in the back. It made a farce of the de-escalation and the return to relative calm over the previous week. It pulled the pin on a grenade. It beggared restraint.
The police killing of Rayshard Brooks made a farce of the de-escalation and the return to relative calm over the previous week.
About 100 young white people stood in front of a line of cars, arms locked, waiting for police to arrest them. On the northbound side, state troopers had a small armada of police cars ready to charge. Traffic backed up for miles in both directions. And in the middle of this standoff lay a quarter-mile of empty road like a street party, a placid bubble where people skateboarded and rode bicycles.
“White allyship means showing up even when I’m exhausted. Because as exhausted as I feel, it doesn’t come close to what my Black brothers and sisters must feel right now,” said Hannah Hill, a manager at the affordable housing startup PadSplit who is also an Episcopal priest and frequent protest chaplain. “It means that when I do show up, for the first time in my life, I have to realize I’m not in charge. I have to recognize that I don’t know what’s right for these Black protesters. Instead, I step back — or to the front of the line if asked — and allow them to direct me. To cede my own power and cultural supremacy to those leaders around me. It’s supporting their cause and their pain — it’s not about me.”
It’s not the first time people have taken over a highway here. A handful of protesters briefly shut down the connector in 2014 as the city erupted in grief over the police shooting death of Michael Brown. The next day, I watched more state troopers than one would think it possible to summon carefully prevent about 10,000 protesters from repeating the move. Demonstrators instead merrily led cops up and down Atlanta’s downtown streets late into the night, though without the smashed windows and graffiti of the last two weeks. Georgia’s conservative legislators subsequently tried and failed to make blocking a highway in protest a felony offense.
Saturday night, hundreds of people spilled onto the highway after hours of street protest in front of the Wendy’s. Protest chaplains had walked back demonstrators who tried to take the overpass earlier in the day, largely because there weren’t enough people to do it safely, Jackson said.
Police had also used force once earlier that day, when protesters had surrounded a police SUV trying to pull out of the parking lot of a liquor store across the street from the Wendy’s. Black bloc demonstrators started throwing bottles of water — and urine — at the cops. After someone hit a cop with a thrown skateboard, police let loose with ordinance — tear gas and a flash-bang grenade.
As with the highway stunt, the crowd bellowing “Fuck 12” (local slang for cops) was multiracial, though most of the parking lot projectiles came from white rioters from the black bloc. Black activists are wrestling with how to incorporate white help to address racism. It’s clear that discrimination cannot be solved without — as Chris Rock put it — nicer white people. An end to white supremacy requires white people to stop imposing it. On the other hand, black activists loathe the idea of surrendering their agency to white people in pursuit of racial equity, because it can be misused.
Black activists are wrestling with how to incorporate white help to address racism.
Just as police started to clear the protest from the highway, vandals set the Wendy’s on fire. I walked over as it started, to see a skinny young white guy wearing black bloc anonymizing gear gingerly step through a broken plate glass window of the restaurant to the gas station parking lot next door.
He was immediately confronted by four rugged young black men, all pissed off — at him.
“You don’t fucking live around here,” one man said to him, inches from his face. The black bloc guy looked petrified. “They are going to blame us for that.” The group milled around a bit, unsure if they wanted to let him walk, feed him to the cops, or just beat him like a rug.
Then a fire truck and a sheriff’s vehicle rolled up behind them. People — black and white — knelt in the street to block their path. The neighborhood guys walked away; the white guy ran into the street. One of the men looked down onto a silly little patch of lawn carved out of the parking lot concrete, picked up an apple-sized rock, and hurled it at the driver’s side window of the patrol car.
It’s one thing if someone from out of town does damage. Another if the locals do it. It’s one thing if a white person commits an act of arson in the name of black lives. Another if a black person does it. Which may actually be the point of all of this.
Slowly, amid a hail of rocks, the crowd backed the fire truck and the police car up University Avenue. Cellphone dead, I left before things got worse.
Police have a $10,000 reward for tips leading to the arrest of someone caught on camera torching the Wendy’s. The picture is of someone who looks like a white woman. Jackson, the reverend, said she saw the entire event, and that a multiracial group started the fire, including the young man I had seen.
As I walked the half-mile back to my car, I passed by a police major helping coordinate the SWAT team prepping out of sight. He and I are acquainted from my time working on homelessness and mental illness for the downtown business district. Out of sight of the crowds, after a long night, I walked up to him and unloaded.
Related I Saw My Friends Beaten by Police. This Is What Happens When Cities Prioritize Property Over Black Lives.
“They think the chief resigning is going to change anything? That’s the worst thing that could have happened,” I half screamed. “Who’s going to be the interim? Someone who doesn’t have enough institutional authority to change anything. Where the fuck is the mayor! Of all the shitty timing for something like this to happen. Your guy just torched two weeks of protests. Things were starting to calm down, and we were starting to talk about reforms. What the fuck are we supposed to do now?”
“Well,” he said, “the leaders will have to come together, settle on a list of demands, and meet with the mayor.”
All that day, as I listened to people, it was clear that a dozen people were trying to lead. Richard Rose, the head of Atlanta’s NAACP, addressed the crowd and gave a press conference, and was shouted down by the street. A branch of Black Hebrew Israelites — a Southern Poverty Law Center-certified hate group — had a loudspeaker-fueled diatribe going through most of the day. Mary Hooks from Black Lives Matter competed with people from the Rainbow-PUSH Coalition, from Southerners on New Ground, from city agencies, from local nonprofits and from groups I had never heard of. Leadership in the street meant having a bullhorn and a stepladder.
“Man, there is no leader,” I replied. “All of this is organic. It’s just happening. There is no one to negotiate with, because anyone who claimed to have the authority to speak for the street would be lying and everyone knows it.”
His eyebrow arched. “So, it’s just looting and rioting” he said.
“Well, I’ll give you rioting,” I replied. “No one is going to steal anything around here.”
“It’s probably a good thing that you’re leaving then,” he said. “We’re about to gas the shit out it.”


theintercept--2020-06-18--The AFL-CIO's Police Union Problem Is Bigger Than You Think

After the near murder of a 75-year-old man on a sidewalk in Buffalo , New York , the city ’ s police union , the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association , responded with organized demonstrations of support for the officers who shoved the elderly man to the ground .
After the murder of George Floyd , the Minneapolis Police Officers Federation was defiant , with President Bob Kroll , who had recently defended his role in three police shootings , attacking Floyd as a criminal , and lashing out at local politicians for not allowing the police to be rougher on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New York City , which has attracted reprobation for doxxing NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio ’ s daughter Chiara , has also moved to a furious war footing .
The Louisville Metro Police Union in Kentucky rallied around the killers of Breonna Taylor , as the officers involved haven ’ t been fired , let alone charged .
The reactionary intransigence has brought into focus the role of police unions in creating conditions for unchecked violence .
On June 8 , the Writers Guild of America East , a 6,000-member AFL-CIO affiliate that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including at The Intercept ) , passed a resolution that urged its parent body to “ disaffiliate ” the International Union of Police Associations , the sole police-only union in the federation .
“ As long as police unions continue to wield their collective bargaining power as a cudgel , preventing reforms and accountability , no one is safe , ” WGAE wrote in a statement .
The resolution drew broad support inside the AFL-CIO but also opposition , and it has so far been rejected .
Lost in the debate , however @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the immediate inspiration for the resolution would be untouched .
Neither the Minneapolis , New York City , Louisville , or Buffalo unions are part of the IUPA or any other AFL-CIO union .
Three are independent unions and one , in Louisville , belongs to the arch-reactionary Fraternal Order of Police .
And , adding more complexity to advocates of disentangling police unions from the broader organized labor movement , the IUPA , with its 100,000 members , is far from the only union within the AFL-CIO that represents cops .
Police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ influential presence in some of the country ’ s largest and most progressive unions , like the United Food and Commercial Workers ; the American Federation of State , County , and Municipal Employees ; the American Federation of Government Employees ; and the Communications Workers of America .
All are major members of the AFL-CIO union federation .
The Change to Win union federation , which broke away from the AFL-CIO in 2005 , is home to the Service Employees International Union , which has thousands of law enforcement members in its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Government Employees chapter , as well as the Teamsters , which represents tens of thousands of police and corrections officers .
Police unions , compared to others within organized labor , tend to be more rigidly ideological and are adept at organizing .
That combination means police unions can often pull their coalition partners — particularly in corrections , probation , and the building trades — to the right on issues that go beyond strict policing concerns .
Bill Fletcher Jr. , a former education director at both the AFL-CIO and AFGE , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ labor , said that he has witnessed past efforts at major unions to address issues related to criminal justice reform or racism , and seen them collapse in the face of internal police opposition .
“ The leadership of the overall union will cower in the face of this ” law enforcement opposition , he said , “ in part because they are afraid that the law enforcement units will leave .
That has happened in every union that I ’ ve worked with and every union that I have observed.
” And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police in particular will often vote with their feet to join other unions , a practice that is very uncommon in the rest of labor — giving them additional leverage over internal union deliberations .
“ Having law enforcement units in other unions , whether it is AFSCME , UFCW or the Teamsters , has a very conservative impact on the union , ” Fletcher said .
“ The law enforcement units tend to be very well organized and very conservative .
They will intervene when there are union debates on anything that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the movement for black lives or issues of immigration and detention.
” Indeed , the AFL-CIO , which represents 12.5 million members in over 50 affiliated unions , swiftly rejected the WGAE ’ s resolution .
“ We believe the best way to use our influence on the issue of police brutality is to engage our police affiliates rather than isolate them .
Many of our unions have adopted a code of excellence for their members and industries that could and should be applied to those who are sworn to protect and serve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wrote in a June 9 statement .
“ We believe the labor movement must hold our own institutions accountable .
A union must never be a shield from criminal conduct.
” is undoubtedly watching the controversy inside the AFL-CIO closely is the Fraternal Order of Police , which is not affiliated with either the AFL-CIO or Change to Win federations and was one of only a few unions to endorse Donald Trump in 2016 .
A vote by the AFL-CIO Executive Council to expel IUPA could be a boon to the FOP , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the door with them .
With union density lower than at any time in the last 80 years , unions often feel that they can not afford to lose any more members .
Setting police unions fully apart from the rest of organized labor would , some advocates hope , heighten the already existing internal contradictions and hasten a reckoning .
That reckoning , some unions worry and some conservative opponents of labor hope , would boomerang onto other public sector workers , who are disproportionately African American .
And after a decade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bargaining rights , union leadership is concerned about changes to police union collective bargaining resulting in weakening protections for all public sector workers , as has been proposed by numerous right-wing think tanks .
Ben Sachs , a labor and industry professor at Harvard Law who recently launched a project to reform police union collective bargaining to end police abuses , understands the concerns of union leaders and others that a push to reform police union collective bargaining could endanger a broader subset of workers .
“ It is absolutely critical that any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ problem here , which is police violence .
Any changes to police collective bargaining law should apply only to collective bargaining practices that directly implicate police violence .
We can ’ t allow changes to police collective bargaining to become a stalking horse for those with a political agenda to undermine other public sector unions , ” Sachs said .
“ At the same time , this is an immediate and enormous crisis .
That has to be dealt with in a robust way .
If that means that being open to some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s incumbent on us to be open to that.
” Veena Dubal , a University of California , Hastings College of the Law professor who resigned from the Berkeley police oversight commission due to its toothlessness , argued that demands to defund or abolish the police reflected the tension of attempting to address the ways that police collective bargaining agreements protect violent cops without infringing on public sector collective bargaining rights .
“ Rather than open the door to the de-unionization of public sector workers , a much better strategy is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would include the AFL-CIO saying it didn ’ t want to be associated with cop unions , said Dubal .
That strategy , Dubal argued , would recognize that “ police aren ’ t workers even in the same way that firemen are workers .
Police defend property .
They have historically defended white property .
We ’ re not in a place where that is going to change.
” The end goal , Dubal said , would be to “ take the emphasis away from the unions and refocus on defunding and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ movement activists we have to push back against racism and the institutionalization of racism amongst and our communities .
That was the failure of labor in the 1960s .
… We ’ re not going to achieve the racial equality and economic justice in the labor movement if we don ’ t continue to make these strides.
” Saladin Muhammad , a former organizer with the United Electrical , Radio , and Machine Workers of America and current co-coordinator of the Southern Workers Assembly , meanwhile believes the AFL-CIO should expel the IUPA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ consider expulsion of their law enforcement units as well .
“ I believe if the Minnesota cops would have come out — not just one or two but hundreds of them — come out and condemned what happened to George Floyd , that might have been an important statement .
But they didn ’ t .
This blue wall of silence that exists as a part of police culture has stopped this kind of open challenge by police to police brutality.
” “ Expelling the police is one question but it doesn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they function .
But it is a step forward , ” said Muhammad , who argued that the rank and file must also take action to address systemic racism .
“ As an African-American , this killing with impunity that exists really speaks to the question of whether the working class is going to unite on a multinational , multiracial basis around conditions that affect a section of the working class .
Responding to these kinds of acts has to begin to be seen as an obligation of the working class and of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Steven Pitts , a professor at the UC Berkeley Labor Center who has led racial justice discussions for many unions , argued that the behavior of cops is a bigger issue than the presence of their unions within the AFL-CIO .
“ What we need now is to stop cops from killing Black people .
Sometimes symbolic steps can be useful .
But the final marker in the sand is to restrain the power of the police to kill Black people .
We need to identify the concrete policies and procedures that allow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ race and brutality — it may be an issue of collective bargaining , arbitration , or disciplinary records — once we identify those things and then we make them a condition of further acceptance in the AFL-CIO .
Expelling cop unions would then become a tool to change those policies and procedures that lead to brutality .
If we can ’ t draw a direct line from expulsion to the elimination of bad practices , then I ’ d want to focus on the bad practices.
” Unions should also focus on empowering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ How do you bring power to those that are powerless ?
How do you increase the power of Black workers , Asian workers , Latino workers and so forth ?
Otherwise we ’ re asking people , like the AFL-CIO leadership , who have good hearts but they will behave imperfectly if workers of color lack power in society , ” Pitts said , noting that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka “ makes a calculus to say things in one context and differently in another and our job is to change the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of power.
” There are few historical examples of unions getting kicked out of the labor movement .
The UE , which Muhammad was formerly an organizer with , was one of the communist-led unions expelled from the CIO .
After its expulsion , over 90 percent of its 700,000 members were pressured and red-baited into joining more conservative unions , all of whom were much less progressive on racial justice issues .
“ I think that SEIU , AFSCME , and the Teamsters should consider expelling their cop locals , ” said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ real strong element of business unionism that is making some unions reluctant [ to expel ] .
I haven ’ t really seen any of the major unions that have cops really struggle with the cops and … expel members of their union who have committed these vicious acts and killings.
” “ Expelling a law enforcement unit from an international union would depend if there was a violation of the constitution , ” Fletcher said .
Indeed , that ’ s the argument the WGAE made in its resolution on expelling IUPA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are incompatible with the AFL-CIO ’ s stated goals : ‘ to vanquish oppression , privation and cruelty in all their forms.
’ ” The resolution went on : “ the policies or activities of [ the IUPA ] are consistently directed toward the achievement of the program or purposes of authoritarianism , totalitarianism , terrorism and other forces that suppress individual liberties and freedom of association and oppose the basic principles of free and democratic trade unionism.
” Fletcher suggested that it may be more effective to softly nudge the police unions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ discussion about police brutality and criminal justice , noting that the AFL-CIO completed a racial justice commission in 2017 in response to the emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2014 and 2015 .
The IUPA did not participate in it .
“ The AFL could look into law enforcement and part of it would be about race and one of the consequences is that the IUPA could decide to leave .
There might be police units of AFL-CIO affiliates that would object to such a discussion .
But there ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leave and them being thrown out.
” police unions often centers around their collective bargaining agreements , which typically make it difficult to terminate an officer for misconduct .
Police unions also have a stable of friendly arbitrators jointly approved by management and union who typically issue decisions that are much friendlier to officers than arbitrators in typical public sector collective bargaining .
In states with public sector collective bargaining , such agreements are made possible by laws that are friendlier to police and fire unions than others , allowing them “ interest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ process far friendlier to unions than typical collective bargaining .
Union leadership is concerned that efforts to reform the police collective bargaining process could backfire and endanger public sector labor rights more broadly .
AFSCME President Lee Saunders , who is African American , spoke to those concerns in an op-ed in USA Today , where he wrote , “ Just as it was wrong when racists went out of their way to exclude black people from unions , it is wrong to deny this freedom to police officers today.
” Conservatives , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s editorial page to libertarian think tanks , have been making the argument that problems with police union collective bargaining justifies the elimination of public sector collective bargaining rights altogether , in violation of international labor law .
In major confrontations , police unions have already failed to show solidarity with other public sector unions .
In Wisconsin , where the notorious Act 10 revoking collective bargaining rights for public employees provoked mass demonstrations in 2011 , GOP Gov .
Scott Walker carved cops out of his assault , depriving teachers and other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could come from a broader coalition .
The police unions did not stand with the other workers .

After the near murder of a 75-year-old man on a sidewalk in Buffalo, New York, the city’s police union, the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association, responded with organized demonstrations of support for the officers who shoved the elderly man to the ground.
After the murder of George Floyd, the Minneapolis Police Officers Federation was defiant, with President Bob Kroll, who had recently defended his role in three police shootings, attacking Floyd as a criminal, and lashing out at local politicians for not allowing the police to be rougher on protesters. The Sergeants Benevolent Association in New York City, which has attracted reprobation for doxxing NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio’s daughter Chiara, has also moved to a furious war footing. The Louisville Metro Police Union in Kentucky rallied around the killers of Breonna Taylor, as the officers involved haven’t been fired, let alone charged.
The reactionary intransigence has brought into focus the role of police unions in creating conditions for unchecked violence. On June 8, the Writers Guild of America East, a 6,000-member AFL-CIO affiliate that represents television writers and digital journalists (including at The Intercept), passed a resolution that urged its parent body to “disaffiliate” the International Union of Police Associations, the sole police-only union in the federation. “As long as police unions continue to wield their collective bargaining power as a cudgel, preventing reforms and accountability, no one is safe,” WGAE wrote in a statement.
The resolution drew broad support inside the AFL-CIO but also opposition, and it has so far been rejected. Lost in the debate, however, is that the unions who were the immediate inspiration for the resolution would be untouched. Neither the Minneapolis, New York City, Louisville, or Buffalo unions are part of the IUPA or any other AFL-CIO union. Three are independent unions and one, in Louisville, belongs to the arch-reactionary Fraternal Order of Police. And, adding more complexity to advocates of disentangling police unions from the broader organized labor movement, the IUPA, with its 100,000 members, is far from the only union within the AFL-CIO that represents cops.
Police have a small but politically and ideologically influential presence in some of the country’s largest and most progressive unions, like the United Food and Commercial Workers; the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees; the American Federation of Government Employees; and the Communications Workers of America. All are major members of the AFL-CIO union federation.
The Change to Win union federation, which broke away from the AFL-CIO in 2005, is home to the Service Employees International Union, which has thousands of law enforcement members in its International Brotherhood of Police Organizations/National Association of Government Employees chapter, as well as the Teamsters, which represents tens of thousands of police and corrections officers.
Police unions, compared to others within organized labor, tend to be more rigidly ideological and are adept at organizing.
Police unions, compared to others within organized labor, tend to be more rigidly ideological and are adept at organizing. That combination means police unions can often pull their coalition partners — particularly in corrections, probation, and the building trades — to the right on issues that go beyond strict policing concerns.
Bill Fletcher Jr., a former education director at both the AFL-CIO and AFGE, and a leading expert on race and labor, said that he has witnessed past efforts at major unions to address issues related to criminal justice reform or racism, and seen them collapse in the face of internal police opposition. “The leadership of the overall union will cower in the face of this” law enforcement opposition, he said, “in part because they are afraid that the law enforcement units will leave. That has happened in every union that I’ve worked with and every union that I have observed.” And unlike other groups of union members, police in particular will often vote with their feet to join other unions, a practice that is very uncommon in the rest of labor — giving them additional leverage over internal union deliberations.
“Having law enforcement units in other unions, whether it is AFSCME, UFCW or the Teamsters, has a very conservative impact on the union,” Fletcher said. “The law enforcement units tend to be very well organized and very conservative. They will intervene when there are union debates on anything that has to do with law enforcement, the movement for black lives or issues of immigration and detention.”
Indeed, the AFL-CIO, which represents 12.5 million members in over 50 affiliated unions, swiftly rejected the WGAE’s resolution. “We believe the best way to use our influence on the issue of police brutality is to engage our police affiliates rather than isolate them. Many of our unions have adopted a code of excellence for their members and industries that could and should be applied to those who are sworn to protect and serve,” the AFL-CIO’s board wrote in a June 9 statement. “We believe the labor movement must hold our own institutions accountable. A union must never be a shield from criminal conduct.”
Workers clean graffiti off of an entrance sign to the AFL-CIO headquarters that was vandalized during overnight unrest, June 1, 2020, in Washington, D.C. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
One organization that is undoubtedly watching the controversy inside the AFL-CIO closely is the Fraternal Order of Police, which is not affiliated with either the AFL-CIO or Change to Win federations and was one of only a few unions to endorse Donald Trump in 2016.
A vote by the AFL-CIO Executive Council to expel IUPA could be a boon to the FOP, if other police union members walked out the door with them. With union density lower than at any time in the last 80 years, unions often feel that they cannot afford to lose any more members.
Setting police unions fully apart from the rest of organized labor would, some advocates hope, heighten the already existing internal contradictions and hasten a reckoning. That reckoning, some unions worry and some conservative opponents of labor hope, would boomerang onto other public sector workers, who are disproportionately African American. And after a decade of nonstop attacks on public sector collective bargaining rights, union leadership is concerned about changes to police union collective bargaining resulting in weakening protections for all public sector workers, as has been proposed by numerous right-wing think tanks.
Ben Sachs, a labor and industry professor at Harvard Law who recently launched a project to reform police union collective bargaining to end police abuses, understands the concerns of union leaders and others that a push to reform police union collective bargaining could endanger a broader subset of workers.
We can’t allow changes to police collective bargaining to become a stalking horse for those with a political agenda to undermine other public sector unions.”
“It is absolutely critical that any reforms remain tightly focused on the actual problem here, which is police violence. Any changes to police collective bargaining law should apply only to collective bargaining practices that directly implicate police violence. We can’t allow changes to police collective bargaining to become a stalking horse for those with a political agenda to undermine other public sector unions,” Sachs said. “At the same time, this is an immediate and enormous crisis. That has to be dealt with in a robust way. If that means that being open to some changes to police collective bargaining laws, it’s incumbent on us to be open to that.”
Veena Dubal, a University of California, Hastings College of the Law professor who resigned from the Berkeley police oversight commission due to its toothlessness, argued that demands to defund or abolish the police reflected the tension of attempting to address the ways that police collective bargaining agreements protect violent cops without infringing on public sector collective bargaining rights.
“Rather than open the door to the de-unionization of public sector workers, a much better strategy is a social movement strategy,” which would include the AFL-CIO saying it didn’t want to be associated with cop unions, said Dubal. That strategy, Dubal argued, would recognize that “police aren’t workers even in the same way that firemen are workers. Police defend property. They have historically defended white property. We’re not in a place where that is going to change.”
The end goal, Dubal said, would be to “take the emphasis away from the unions and refocus on defunding and abolition of police departments. As labor movement activists we have to push back against racism and the institutionalization of racism amongst and our communities. That was the failure of labor in the 1960s. … We’re not going to achieve the racial equality and economic justice in the labor movement if we don’t continue to make these strides.”
Saladin Muhammad, a former organizer with the United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America and current co-coordinator of the Southern Workers Assembly, meanwhile believes the AFL-CIO should expel the IUPA unequivocally — and that mainstream unions should consider expulsion of their law enforcement units as well. “I believe if the Minnesota cops would have come out — not just one or two but hundreds of them — come out and condemned what happened to George Floyd, that might have been an important statement. But they didn’t. This blue wall of silence that exists as a part of police culture has stopped this kind of open challenge by police to police brutality.”
“Expelling the police is one question but it doesn’t stop them from functioning the way they function. But it is a step forward,” said Muhammad, who argued that the rank and file must also take action to address systemic racism.
“Responding to these kinds of acts has to begin to be seen as an obligation of the working class and of trade unions.”
“As an African-American, this killing with impunity that exists really speaks to the question of whether the working class is going to unite on a multinational, multiracial basis around conditions that affect a section of the working class. Responding to these kinds of acts has to begin to be seen as an obligation of the working class and of trade unions,” said Muhammad.
Steven Pitts, a professor at the UC Berkeley Labor Center who has led racial justice discussions for many unions, argued that the behavior of cops is a bigger issue than the presence of their unions within the AFL-CIO. “What we need now is to stop cops from killing Black people. Sometimes symbolic steps can be useful. But the final marker in the sand is to restrain the power of the police to kill Black people. We need to identify the concrete policies and procedures that allow cops that we know have issues around race and brutality — it may be an issue of collective bargaining, arbitration, or disciplinary records — once we identify those things and then we make them a condition of further acceptance in the AFL-CIO. Expelling cop unions would then become a tool to change those policies and procedures that lead to brutality. If we can’t draw a direct line from expulsion to the elimination of bad practices, then I’d want to focus on the bad practices.”
Unions should also focus on empowering Black workers to fight against anti-Black racism. “How do you bring power to those that are powerless? How do you increase the power of Black workers, Asian workers, Latino workers and so forth? Otherwise we’re asking people, like the AFL-CIO leadership, who have good hearts but they will behave imperfectly if workers of color lack power in society,” Pitts said, noting that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka “makes a calculus to say things in one context and differently in another and our job is to change the context. That’s a matter of power.”
There are few historical examples of unions getting kicked out of the labor movement. The UE, which Muhammad was formerly an organizer with, was one of the communist-led unions expelled from the CIO. After its expulsion, over 90 percent of its 700,000 members were pressured and red-baited into joining more conservative unions, all of whom were much less progressive on racial justice issues.
“I think that SEIU, AFSCME, and the Teamsters should consider expelling their cop locals,” said Muhammad. “There’s a real strong element of business unionism that is making some unions reluctant [to expel]. I haven’t really seen any of the major unions that have cops really struggle with the cops and … expel members of their union who have committed these vicious acts and killings.”
“Expelling a law enforcement unit from an international union would depend if there was a violation of the constitution,” Fletcher said. Indeed, that’s the argument the WGAE made in its resolution on expelling IUPA, which argued that “police unions are incompatible with the AFL-CIO’s stated goals: ‘to vanquish oppression, privation and cruelty in all their forms.’” The resolution went on: “the policies or activities of [the IUPA] are consistently directed toward the achievement of the program or purposes of authoritarianism, totalitarianism, terrorism and other forces that suppress individual liberties and freedom of association and oppose the basic principles of free and democratic trade unionism.”
Fletcher said that if the AFL-CIO held a nationwide discussion, one of the results may be that the police unions could choose to leave, noting that the AFL-CIO completed a racial justice commission in 2017 in response to the emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2014 and 2015. The IUPA did not participate in it. “The AFL could look into law enforcement and part of it would be about race and one of the consequences is that the IUPA could decide to leave. There might be police units of AFL-CIO affiliates that would object to such a discussion. But there’s a big difference between them deciding to leave and them being thrown out.”
The conversation around police unions often centers around their collective bargaining agreements, which typically make it difficult to terminate an officer for misconduct. Police unions also have a stable of friendly arbitrators jointly approved by management and union who typically issue decisions that are much friendlier to officers than arbitrators in typical public sector collective bargaining. In states with public sector collective bargaining, such agreements are made possible by laws that are friendlier to police and fire unions than others, allowing them “interest arbitration” to settle contracts, a process far friendlier to unions than typical collective bargaining.
In major confrontations, police unions have already failed to show solidarity with other public sector unions.
Union leadership is concerned that efforts to reform the police collective bargaining process could backfire and endanger public sector labor rights more broadly. AFSCME President Lee Saunders, who is African American, spoke to those concerns in an op-ed in USA Today, where he wrote, “Just as it was wrong when racists went out of their way to exclude black people from unions, it is wrong to deny this freedom to police officers today.”
Conservatives, ranging from the Wall Street Journal’s editorial page to libertarian think tanks, have been making the argument that problems with police union collective bargaining justifies the elimination of public sector collective bargaining rights altogether, in violation of international labor law.
In major confrontations, police unions have already failed to show solidarity with other public sector unions. In Wisconsin, where the notorious Act 10 revoking collective bargaining rights for public employees provoked mass demonstrations in 2011, GOP Gov. Scott Walker carved cops out of his assault, depriving teachers and other public workers of the political protection that could come from a broader coalition. The police unions did not stand with the other workers.