Teamsters mobilize the movement

Note: This is a first-person account of Safeyyah Edwards, a member of Teamsters Local 507 in Cleveland. She is attending the Teamsters National Black Caucus conference in Charlotte, N.C.

Today was T-shirt day. The shirts have the conference’s theme on them: Mobilizing the Movement and Making a Difference, which was basically all of today’s speakers’ messages. They talked about the importance of getting out and voting. One speaker not only discussed the importance of the presidential election, but to also be proactive in the governor races, Senate races, etc., because if the people elected to these positions are anti-union, it will hurt workers.

W.C. Smith also gave information related to the James R. Hoffa Scholarship Fund, which was informative. Mr. Smith also talked about his history with the TNBC and the importance of forming more chapters. The TNBC is all about educating members. He would really like to see more banners in the ballroom each year representing more chapters.

The TNBC Choir performed last night. They were phenomenal. The goal is to get 100 people in the choir, so we need to build on that each year.

This afternoon we are attending regional meetings, which will focus on the chapters in each region, what our goals will be moving forward to build each chapter, activities we will pursue, and programs within the TNBC.

Read more about the conference (and check out the photos) here.