UNFINISHED BUSINESS
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Richard Trumka’s legacy and his vision for labor in America By Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor
oal miners are like longshore workers in that they’re tribal in nature. Distinctions are made based on how many generations your family has been a part of the profession and successive generations of children are raised to live, work and eventually die the way their fathers had — in the mines. Trumka was no different. Trumka’s father and grandfather worked in the mines. He, the brightest of his generation, wasn’t really supposed to go into the mines. He saw his father operate a machine in the mines. Enamored by his father’s deft and graceful manipulation of the machine, Trumka wanted to be like him. Trumka recounted to journalists the summer before he went away to college. He’d taken a job in the mine and his father told him, “The first drop of sweat, the first drop of blood, and you’ll never be able to get it out of your system.” Trumka later found his father’s words to be true. “There’s a real satisfaction to the work. When you open up a new section, you’re the first human being who’s ever set foot in that place. When you close a section, you’re the last human being who’ll ever be there.” Trumka idolized John L. Lewis, the iconic president of United Mine Workers of America from 1920 to 1960, the way oldschool longshore workers revere Harry Bridges. There was never any question that Trumka would use his brains to get ahead. From a very early age, his ambition was to work for the union. Trumka was once quoted: “When I was in the eighth grade, I remember talking to my grandfather and saying that I wanted to help the Richard L. Trumka graphic by Suzanne Matsumiya
The Supreme Court’s real target — farm workers’ organizing rights p. 7
By Paul Rosenberg, Senior Editor
With less than two weeks to go in the California recall campaign, the ex-fiancée of the leading Republican candidate, Larry Elder, accused him of waving a gun at her while high on marijuana in 2015, after which she broke off an 18-month engagement. “For a minute there ... I thought it was a Phil Spector moment,’’ Alexandra Datig told Politico, referencing the famed record producer who shot and killed actress Lana Clarkson in 2003. Elder denies it ever happened, of course. But it was eerily reminiscent of the last recall election, when the GOP front-runner, Arnold Schwarzenegger, faced a slew of accusations over his misogynist behavior — most of which were completely ignored until the Los Angeles Times published a last-minute round-up investigation. And it came on the heels of multiple misogynistic remarks surfacing from Elder’s past — denigrating women’s knowledge “about political issues, economics
and current events,” defending discrimination against women who might become pregnant, and chiding “hypersensitivity” to sexist conduct in the workplace — all of which drew sharp criticism from other GOP candidates, most notably, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer. “When I saw those comments directed about women, directed about pregnancy discrimination, that’s not right,” Faulconer said. “That’s not right for anybody of any political party or background. That’s not what you want to have your governor doing or talking about.” But the differences between the two races are much bigger than the similarities, in at least four ways. First is the difference in how misogynistic behavior is viewed: The #MeToo movement has finally changed how seriously such accusations are taken, reflected in the fact that the Los Angeles Police Department is
now investigating the incident. But thanks to Donald Trump, GOP voters are virtually immune to those long overdue changes, when one of their cherished heroes is involved. Second is the difference in the candidates: Schwarzenegger was a much better-known, more mainstream, and popular figure, who went on to win a majority of votes. Elder is a niche-audience celebrity, a rightwing talk radio host who’ll be lucky to get half the votes that Gov. Gavin Newsom gets — but, leading a badly fragmented field, he’ll still be elected if Newsom fails to get more that 50% on the question of whether he should be recalled. As Politico put it, “A motivated GOP electorate and an indifferent Democratic base could be all it takes to force Newsom out.” Third is what’s driving the recall: The 2003 recall
September 2 - 15, 2021
Point Fermin’s Lighthouse Café reopens under new ownership p. 16
Grievance, Conspiracism and the California GOP
Chasing the dream — Leo Rossi and the possibility of freedom p. 13
The Great Replacement Election
Labor Day Edition
Neighborhood councils object to proposed suspension policy p. 5
[See Trumka, p. 10]
[See Election, p. 21] 1