U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange

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Juan Castillo discusses ESNA

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Dec. 1 Discussion about Mexico

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Links to streamed video from Tijuana Conference and Classes

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Final Session 8th U.S./Cuba/Mexico Latin America Labor Conference

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8va Conferencia Sindical Tijuana 2011

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8va Conferencia Sindical Tijuana 2011, a set by Unión del Barrio on Flickr.

8th Conference welcomes: Cananea miners and Mexican electrical workers

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8th Tijuana Labor Conferencewelcomes

Sergio Tolano Lizarraga, Sec-Gen Nat'l. Miners UnionSec. 65
Humberto Montes de Oca, SME

Cananea miners and Mexican electricalworkers build a social movement strong enough to force change

A social movement strong enough to force change. Thisstatement could describe the aim of the Occupy Wall Street movement,but it refers to the struggle of Mexican miners in Cananea,Sonora and electrical workers who have years of experience. Leaders from these struggleswill open the 8th U.S./Cuba/Mexico/Latin America LaborConference on Dec. 2 in Tijuana, Mexico.

National Miners Union Section 65 Secretary-General SergioTolano Lizarraga and Mexican Electrical Workers (SME)Humberto Montes de Oca will be joined by representativesfrom the Cuban Workers Central Union (CTC), the WorldFederation of Trade Unions - Americas Region, the CentralWorkers Union of Brasil (CTB), Workers Interunion Plenaryand National Workers Convention of Uruguay (PIT-CNT), and more.Exchanges with U.S. “occupy” participants andrecognition for completion of the three-day Workers Schoolthat precedes the Tijuana Conference are also planned.

Reflecting a renewed effort to free the Cuban Five unjustlyheld in U.S. prisons for more than 13 years, the Conferencesolidarity evening is moved to Saturday, Dec. 3. A musicaltribute to the Cuban Five by young Tijuana Opera singers and thenew video “Will the real terrorist please standup?” aim to inspire increased union action on thisimportant campaign.

Registration and hotel information is available at the page column on the right side of this blog or email toLaborExchange@gmail.com

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8th U.S./Cuba/Mexico/Latin America Labor Conference

You areinvited . . . won't you joinus?

This Dec. 2, 3and 4 workers from the U.S., Cuba, Mexico, Brazil,Venezuela, Argentina and other Latin American countries willanalyze the global capitalist crisis, its effects on workersthroughout the hemisphere and with real examples showing howto combat it. Three days of intensive classes and discussion-- Nov. 29, 30 and Dec. 1 , with teachers from Cuba's LazaroPena workers' school -- will precede theconference.

Online registration and information is atLaborExchange.blogspot.com

Contact us by email at:LaborExchange@gmail.com
downloadable bilingual leaflets at:
http://uniondelbarrio.org/events/tijuanaConfSindical2011.html

Do you know that for the past four years Labor Federations in Latin America have met to develop a common program? The August 2011 meeting was in Nicaragua and will be held in Mexico in 2012. Representatives from this Encuentro Sindical Nuestra America are joining us. Youth from the Tijuana Opera are singing for the Cuban Five. Chilean singer Ismael Duran will sing songs of struggle.

Your experience, thoughts, and ideasare important to this conference and workers' school as weprogress toward working class continental integration andclass-wide unity to face the bosses and bankers who are destroyingour futures.

Learn more about the Cuban Five unjustlyheld in U.S. prisons, why they were needed in the U.S. toprevent terrorism and what unions around the world are doingfor their freedom. See the Saul Landau movie, "Will the real terrorist please stand up?"

All events will be at the Hotel Palacio Azteca in Tijuana,Mexico with a special Cuba LaborConference room rate that includes a marvelousbreakfast buffet ($81 single, $116 double). Call now toreserve your rooms, toll free from the U.S.: 1 888 9013720/

Registration -- requested by Nov. 20 -- for conference orclasses and hotel information isat:

LaborExchange.blogspot.com

Tijuana conference to take up hemisphere’sstruggles

By Cheryl LaBash

Where is the electrifying Occupy Wall Streetmovement headed?

From capitalist media pundits to the Occupy WallStreet encampments struggling to hold public space incountless cities and towns across the U.S., this question isbubbling underneath the daily actions and policerepression.

An opportunity to discuss the experience of other suchmovements will take place just across the U.S. border fromSan Diego in Tijuana, Mexico, on Dec. 2 to 4 at the 8thU.S./Cuba/Mexico/Latin America Labor Conference. It willfollow a three-day Workers’ School with instructorsfrom the Lázaro Peña Cadre School in Havana,Cuba. Online registration and information are available athttp://LaborExchange.blogspot.com.

Occupations, general strikes and militant marches arebeing renewed in th e U.S. today. On May 1, 2006, themassive immigrant rights marches were effectively generalstrikes in many areas. This national movement had a strongimpact.

Earlier this year, tens of thousands mobilized daily tosupport an occupation of Wisconsin’s Capitol inMadison to challenge an anti-worker program. Through allthis, the working class is learning to take action in itsown name.

In Central and South America and the Caribbean,workers, Indigenous people and rural farmers have walkedthis path before us. They have been on the receiving end ofimperialist economic domination, coup d’états,military dictatorships and rigged elections sponsoredby the United States.

Today the Mexican electrical workersare occupying the central square in Mexico City, which theyhave held since March. Chilean and Colombian students arefighting for education rights. Moreover, tiny Cuba has heldoff the imperialist giant to the north poised to destroythem for more than 50 years with a battle of ideas andprofound unity.

The Oakland call for a citywide general strike and marchto the port on Nov. 2 to “block the flow ofcapital” states the truth: “The Oakland GeneralStrike will demonstrate the wide reaching implications ofthe Occupy Wall Street movement. The entire world is fed upwith the huge disparity of wealth caused by the presentsystem. Now is the time that the people are doing somethingabout it. The Oakland General Strike is a warning shot tothe 1 percent: Their wealth only exists because the 99percent creates it for them.”

That is true. For those who want to discuss where thistruth can take us with active builders of independent socialorders, send a representative to the December conference inTijuana. We have a world to win!

Latin American Labor Conference focus on worker emancipation

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REGISTER NOW - ONLINE!
See instructions in column under DONATE button.

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Latin American Labor Conference to focus on worker emancipation
La Prensa San Diego is a bilingual, widely distributed weekly in the San Diego area. The current issue includes Rocky Neptun's fine article promoting the Tijuana conference. Thank you, Rocky!

Fri, Oct 28, 2011

Stories

By Rocky NeptunSan Diego Indy Media

From Tehran to Scotland, from Hong Kong to the always fiery, militant youth of Rome, the Occupy Wall Street movement has spread across the globe. Tired and angry over decades of corporate owned capitalism, where wealthy stockholders and huge multi-national corporations set the agenda for political and economic policy decisions, plunging millions of middle-class families into poverty, exacerbating the conditions of the already destitute, and forcing millions of youth into either wage slavery or no future at all; the world’s 99% have taken to the streets.

Yet, on that vast continent south of the Atrato Swamp, colonized and exploited for centuries, there were no “occupy” encampments. The people of South American, with the exception of still Yankee dominated Colombia, over the last two decades, have, slowly at first, then rapidly, begun to take back their governments and economies from both the international corporations and their own local corrupt elites.

There was no sudden revolution —only the memory of Che— no storming of the Bastille nor Concord Old North Bridge, no shot heard ‘round the world;’ just the experience of authentic community action and tangible solidarity. First, the villagers took control of what was closest to them – their faith. Steeped in the liberation theology of Jesus’ true ministry, his support of the poor and the disenfranchised, they kicked out the priests and bishops who pampered and supported the rich. Then parish by parish, village by township, city by city, they began organizing, putting forth candidates for local offices; when some of those were arrested, beaten and sometimes killed, others stepped into their places. Workers throughout the continent began occupying work places (a thought for U.S. occupiers, no?) and taking back their unions from corporate lackeys and power liberals with huge salaries.

The growth and strength of the Latin American labor movement for participatory democracy and economic fairness will highlight the 8th Annual Latin American Labor Conference in Tijuana, Mexico. The theme of the early December international gathering is “Continental Integration & Working-Class Unity,” and will explore how Latin American countries have chosen to create alternatives which integrate economies focused on human needs (health-care, education, housing) and not corporate profits.”

A vital component of people first economies according to the conference’s organizers —the U.S. based Labor Exchange— is to build co-operative, collective and worker-owned systems and structures outside the corporate and bank controlled neo-liberal model. Participants of the Trade Union Meeting of Our America movement, who have held meetings throughout the hemisphere and in Central America and Mexico recently, will report on their efforts at worker emancipation. Also to be discussed will be the Bolivarian Alliance’s determination (9 Latin and Caribbean Nations) to achieve a viable alternative to the greed, environmental destructiveness and dehumanization of the corporate owned economic system.

The Conference in Tijuana, December 2-4, at the Hotel Palacio Azteca will be preceded by a three day “Worker’s School,” November 29, 30 and Dec. 1, formed by the Federacion Sindical Mundial of Mexico and the Central Trabajadores de Cuba. The classes, both in Spanish and English, as is the conference itself, will educate and prepare workers, employees, the unemployed, underemployed and youth without possibility of a decent future, for the coming conflagration between the 1% who hoard the planet’s wealth and all the rest of us.

Speaking at both the worker’s school and the conference will be those on the frontline of the war for economic democracy: including Juan Barahona, of the often attacked Honduras Frente Nacional de Resistencia Popular; Leonardo Batalla, from the PIT CNT of Uruguay, Jacobo Torres de Leon, representing the Fuerza Socialista Bolivariana de Trabajadores de Venezuela; Joao Batista Lemos, who is Secretario Adjunto de Relaciones Internacionales for the Brazilian labor union CTB; and, Humberto Montes de Oca, from the government mugged Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas.

There will also be representatives from Ecuador’s Confederacion de Trabajadores; Bolivia’s Central Obrero Boliviano, Cuba’s Central de Trabajadores, and the United States’ SEIU local 721.

The Labor Conference registration is $80.00 for the three-day event or $55.00 for the weekend only. The Worker’s School fee is $60.00 for the entire three days of classes and discussions. Registration is at laborexchange@gmail.com or calling (313) 355-8566 or online at LaborExchange.blogspot.com. Reservations at the Hotel Placio Azteca can be made at (01) 800-026-6660.

For any local student or unemployed person who wishes to attend, the Director of the San Diego Renters Union’s lover, a Mexican national, has made accommodations in his home in Tijuana available free of charge for the full six days of classes and conference. Also, the San Diego Renters Union is offering three scholarships for both the school and the conference. Go to their website,www.SanDiegoRentersUnion or call (619) 450-9804 to apply.

Across the Southern Hemisphere millions of workers and unemployed have locked arms in solidarity to create space for justice and equality, to not only occupy their workplaces but to own them; let us not only support them but learn and “spread the experiences.”

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2011 Tijuana Conference

REGISTER NOW - ONLINE or by mail!

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PLEASE REGISTER BY NOVEMBER 20!

It's the EIGHTH Cuba/Venezuela/North America/Latin AmericaLabor Conference - and 3-day workers' school. Register now, online with chargecard or paypal account at: http://laborexchange.blogspot.com/

(For mailregistration, print out the form below and mail that with a check to LaborExchange, POB 39188, Redford, MI 48239 to be received by Nov. 20)

1) Click on DONATE button (upper right atlaborexchange.blogspot.com), follow instructions

2) REGISTRATION FEES

** Conference $80 (Dec. 2, 3, 4)

** 3-day workers' classes $60 (Nov. 29, 30, Dec. 1)

3) Enter the dollar amount - $60, $80 or $140 for both (ormore, if you can afford an additional donation to help with costs.) You and theLabor Exchange will both receive an email receipt that will be used at theconference to confirm your payment.

5) Send the info on the form below to:laborexchange@gmail.com

THEN - Make your hotel registration at Hotel Palacio Azteca,request the Cuba Labor Conference rate that includes breakfast and Saturdaydinner (if you do not stay in the Hotel Palacio Azteca, please pay $25 extrafor dinner on Saturday)

(Send your hotel confirmation number tolaborexchange@gmail.com) Hotel details are farther down in this post. (If youhave any problems with reserving a hotel room, please let us know - call: 313675-4026.)

Conference Registration/ Datos para su inscripción a laConferencia:

Name/Nombre:_____________________________________

Address/Direccion:___________________________________

City,State, Zip/Ciudad, Estado, Zona Postal: _______

Phone/Telefono:_____________Fax:_____________________

Email/Correo Electronico: ______________________

Union/Organization/Sindicato:____________________________

Enclosed is my registration fee(s) of:

[ ]$ 80 U.S. dollars (includes dinner and special Free theCuban Five program with family members from Cuba)

[ ]$ 60 U.S. dollars for 3-day workers' school

[ ]$ 25 for Saturday dinner. I/we are not staying at theHotel Palacio Azteca.

[ ] I would like to give a donation of $ ________ for a low-incomeparticipant.

[ ]Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 80 dolares US- conferencia

[ ]Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 60 dolares US-curso laboral

[ ]y quisiera aportar la cantidad de $_______para aquellosparticipantes de bajo ingreso.

Make checks payable to: Labor Exchange (if you don't payonline)

Haga los chekes pagables a: Labor Exchange

US/Cuba Labor Exchange ● P.O. BOX 39188 ● Redford MI 48239

● Phone: (313) 675 4026 ● Email: laborexchange@aol.com

(alternate contact: 313 355-8566 or LaborExchange@gmail.com)

WORKERS' SCHOOL (Nov. 29, 30 and Dec. 1): Working togetherwith the Federacion Sindical Mundial in Mexico, the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange,partnered with Union del Barrio, International Action Center and otherorganizers will convene a 3-day workers' school featuring instructor from theCentral Trabajadores de Cuba (Cuba's Central Union organization), from Mexicoand the U.S.

Class begins on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at 9 am at the Hotel Palacio Azteca in Tijuana, Mexico.

FREE THE CUBAN FIVE:With the International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five, the nightof solidarity will ask, "Will the real terrorist please stand up?" anew film by Saul Landau. Hear the latest developments in the internationalstruggle for justice for the Cuban Five.

8TH U.S./CUBA/MEXICO/LATIN AMERICALABOR CONFERENCE,

Dec. 2, 3, 4

Discuss the global capitalist economic crisis and thestruggle for working class unity to win the better world that is possible forworkers and oppressed nations. Share the emerging battles in the U.S.with the experiences and victories in the South. Encuentro Sindical de Nuestra America co-ordinators from Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay are attending ... Cuba, Venezuela, Electrical workers from Mexico who have occupied the Xocalo in Mexico City since March, teachers from Michoacan and more.

VENUE: Hotel Palacio Azteca, Tijuana, Mexico:

Hotel Reservations/Reservaciones de Hotel:

Hotel Palacio Azteca

Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila 22400 Tijuana,Mexico

*Toll Free from USA1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico01 8000266660

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descuento al: CubaLabor Conference to get the special price:

Single/Sencilla Room $81 U.S.Dollars * Double/Doble Room$116 U.S. Dollars*

*(Room rates include two breakfasts and one Saturday dinnerper person)

*(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena por persona)

Saturday: Coffee and sweets all day * Sabado: Cafe ybocadillos todo el dia

Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice sureservacion lo antes possible.

*If you have a problem please call 313 675-4026 orlaborexchange@aol.com (alternate contact 313 355-8566.orlaborexchange@gmail.com)

Tijuana Workers' School and Labor Conference!

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WORKERS' SCHOOL: Working together with the Federacion Sindical Mundial in Mexico, the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange, partnered with Union del Barrio, International Action Center and other organizers will convene a 3-day workers' school featuring instructors from the Central Trabajadores de Cuba (Cuba's Central Union organization), from Mexico and the U.S. Sign up now for more information - send an email to laborexchange@gmail.com -- put in your vacation request! Nov. 29, 30 and Dec. 1.

FREE THE CUBAN FIVE: With the International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five, the night of solidarity will ask, "Will the real terrorist please stand up?" a new film by Saul Landau. Hear the latest developments in the international struggle for justice for the Cuban Five.

8th U.S./Cuba/Mexico/Latin America Labor Conference,

Dec. 2, 3, 4 at the Hotel Palacio Azteca:

Hotel Reservations/Reservaciones de Hotel:
Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila 22400 Tijuana, Mexico
*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660
Conference check in starts Friday afternoon, Dec. 2 - Conference ends 3 pm Sunday, Dec. 4
Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descuento al: Cuba Labor Conference to get the special price:
Single/Sencilla Room $81 U.S.Dollars * Double/Doble Room $116 U.S. Dollars*
*(Room rates include two breakfasts and one Saturday dinner per person)
*(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena por persona)
Saturday: Coffee and sweets all day * Sabado: Cafe y bocadillos todo el dia
Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservacion lo antes possible.
*If you have a problem please call 313 675-4026 or laborexchange@aol.com (alternate contact 313 355-8566.or laborexchange@gmail.com)

REGISTER NOW - ONLINE INFORMATION HERE

REGISTER and PAY online Tijuana Labor Conference and school

It's the EIGHTH Cuba/Venezuela/North America/Latin America Labor Conference - and 3-day Workers' School. Register now, online!

Want to Register and pay online with charge card or paypal account? Here's how at http://laborexchange.blogspot.com/

1) Click on DONATE button (upper right at laborexchange.blogspot.com), follow instructions

REGISTRATION FEES

2) Conference $80 (Dec. 2, 3, 4)

3) 3-day workers' classes $60 (Nov. 29, 30, Dec. 1)

4) Enter the dollar amount - $60, $80 or $140 for both (or more, if you can afford an additional donation to help with costs.) You and the Labor Exchange will both receive an email receipt that will be used at the conference to confirm your payment.

4) Send the info on the form below to: laborexchange@gmail.com

THEN - Make your hotel registration at Hotel Palacio Azteca, request the Cuba Labor Conference rate that includes breakfast and Saturday dinner (if you do not stay in the Hotel Palacio Azteca, please pay $25 extra for dinner on Saturday)

(Send your hotel confirmation number to laborexchange@gmail.com) Hotel details are farther down in this post. (If you have any problems with reserving a hotel room, please let us know - call: 313 675-4026.)

Conference Registration/ Datos para su inscripción a la Conferencia:

Name/Nombre:_____________________________________

Address/Direccion:___________________________________

City,State, Zip/Ciudad, Estado, Zona Postal: _______

Phone/Telefono:_____________Fax:_____________________

Email/Correo Electronico: ______________________

Union/Organization/Sindicato:____________________________

Enclosed is my registration fee(s) of:
[ ]$ 80 U.S. dollars (includes dinner and special Free the Cuban Five program with family members from Cuba)
[ ]$ 60 U.S. dollars for 3-day workers' school

[ ] I would like to give a donation of $ ________ for a low-income participant.

[ ]Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 80 dolares US - conferencia
[ ]Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 60 dolares US -
[ ]y quisiera aportar la cantidad de $_______para aquellos participantes de bajo ingreso.

Make checks payable to: Labor Exchange (if you don't pay online)
Haga los chekes pagables a: Labor Exchange

US/Cuba Labor Exchange ● P.O. BOX 39188 ● Redford MI 48239 ● Phone/Fax: (313) 575 4933 ● Email: laborexchange@aol.com

2011-10-20T19:46:00.000-04:00

REGISTER NOW!
Conference - Dec. 2, 3, 4
Workers' School - Nov. 29, 30, Dec. 1
all at Hotel Palacio Azteca - Tijuana, Mexico
see Registration info in the list to the right

2011 Tijuana UPDATE!

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2011 Tijuana - Dec. 2, 3, 4 Workers' School! NEW

WORKERS' SCHOOL: Working together with the Federacion Sindical Mundial in Mexico, the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange, partnered with Union del Barrio, International Action Center and other organizers will convene a 3-day workers' school featuring instructor from the Central Trabajadores de Cuba (Cuba's Central Union organization), from Mexico and the U.S. Sign up now for more information - send an email to laborexchange@gmail.com -- put in your vacation request! Nov. 29, 30 and Dec. 1.

FREE THE CUBAN FIVE: With the International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five, the Dec. 2 Friday night of solidarity will feature ask, "Will the real terrorist please stand up?" a new film by Saul Landau.

8th U.S./Cuba/Mexico/Latin America Labor Conference,

Dec. 2, 3, 4 at the Hotel Palacio Azteca:

Irish and English workers say Free the Cuban Five! (2008)

VII Labor Conference concludes in Tijuana

Directions:

SOLIDARITY wth the CUBAN FIVE! Free them NOW! Dec 3 in Tijuana REGISTER NOW!

Interview with Mexican union leader coming to the Tijuana Conference in Dec.

July 8 - Friendshipment Caravan - Detroit

"From My Altitude" in Detroit opens June 23

"From My Altitude" who are the Cuban 5?

Dec. 6 Migration and Immigration at SIXTH U.S./Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico Tijuana Labor Conference

Dec. 5 at SIXTH U.S./Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North-South America Labor Conference, Dec. 4-6, 2009 Tijuana, Mexico

Dec. 4 at SIXTH U.S./Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North-South America Labor Conference, Dec. 4-6, 2009 Tijuana, Mexico

Send feedback

4th ESNA ends in Managua! On to Tijuana Dec. 2011

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Send a copy of this message to a friend with this link.

Since the last Tijuana Conference, resistance by workers, poor people and oppressed nations against the domination of international financial institutions and the military that enforces their austerity have percolated in the U.S. and blossomed around the world.

Join sisters and brothers from Cuba, Mexico and more Latin American and Caribbean countries to continue the ESNA process and build for the struggle ahead.

Join us in Tijuana, Dec. 2, 3, 4.

Plan to come a few days earlier -- watch for an announcement soon about labor classes in conjunction with the conference.

Watch laborexchange.blogspot.com - online registration will be active soon. DONATIONS are always gratefully welcomed and accepted online or by mail to Labor Exchange POB 39188, Redford, MI 48239.

http://albatv.org/4o-Encuentro-Sindical-Nuestra.html
Deepening the political consciousness of the American labor movement

4th Meeting Association Our America (Encuentro Sindical Nuestra America) debate over the role of the union movement

NICARAGUA | AUGUST 27, 2011
SOURCE: BY GIORGIO TRUCCHI - LINYM

This Thursday (25 / 8) opened in Managua, Nicaragua, the 4th Meeting Association Our America (ESNA).

Main purpose of the over 300 delegates from 134 organizations from 23 countries of the continent will be "advancing and deepening the political consciousness of the American labor movement," and while "taking stock of progress and remaining gaps exist, and that should be corrected without alarm, "said John Castillo, coordinator of the ESNA.

Castillo explained that this meeting will also seek to make a thorough analysis of the political situation in America and the world to be defining "what is today the role and the challenge of organized international working class."

Therefore, the 4 th ESNA is a space that seeks to "build unity in action of all workers over the idiologías and affiliations with a strong commitment to the political processes of advanced our America," said Castillo .

The coordinator of the event also highlighted the importance of further examining the relationship between unionism and politics. "Remember that in 2005, during the World Social Forum, the Presidents Hugo Chávez, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Evo Morales called to forge a new kind of labor movement, asking not left alone.

Trade unions, central and organized labor - went Castillo - should not be a mere spectator of the political and social changes, but we must be involved and integrated into what is a real dispute with the ruling class " also said the leader of the PIT-CNT in Uruguay.

The theme of the relationship between politics and trade unionism has been at the center of discussion in recent years. "We should not have you fear, because we have come to rely increasingly on our working class. However, be extremely careful."

The labor movement's involvement in these political processes "does not mean being subject to the mandates of governments or political parties. They are different things. I am convinced that workers and their organizations should be increasingly politicized, but less partirizados" Castillo said.

For two days, delegates will be divided into three working groups, addressing key issues such as outsourcing. "We have to continue working for the worker and the worker to take an increasing awareness that we must study, learn, research and perfect for achieving change the correlation of forces and eliminate phenomena such as outsourcing, which is nothing more than a degree top of the exploitation of the working class. "

Finally, Castillo reported that deepen some of the specific commitments made by the ESNA, such as collecting signatures on an international level against the U.S. military base in Latin America, and the proposal made yesterday (25 / 8) by the founder of the FSLN (Sandinista Front for National Liberation), Tomas Borge, on behalf of five Cubans unfairly imprisoned in United States.

The 4th ESNA end on August 27 with the pooling of the results of the three working groups and final reading of the Declaration.

By Giorgio Trucchi - LINyM

Aug. 13 in Los Angeles - Labor's voice, Free the Cuban Five!

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Saturday August 13
6pm (Program will start at 7pm)
SEIU-USWW Hall 828 W. Washington Blvd, Los Angeles Free admission

Program presentations include: Tony Woodley, UNITE the large Irish/English union that produced the youtube below in 2008! Woodley has visited Gerardo Hernandez.

The Cuban Five are Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, René González, Antonio Guerrero and Fernando González. They are sons, husbands, brothers, poets, pilots, college graduates and artists. To the 11 millon Cubans they are considered heroes. They were arrested in 1998, and are currently serving long sentences in five different prisons across the United States. They never killed or threatened anyone, their mission was to infiltrate and monitor the activites of violent groups within the Cuban exiles who have been responsible for the deaths of 3,500 Cubans since 1959.

As the Cuban 5 case continues to be known in the United States, leaders of the international labor movement will gather in Los Angeles to bring this important case to their membership. This event coincides with the birthday of Rene Gonzalez, one of the Cuban 5 who is currently serving his sentence in Marianna Florida.

PROGRAM INCLUDES
An exhibition of political cartoons by Gerardo Hernandez. Herandez is one of the internationally known Cuban 5 political prisoners held in US Prisons since 1998. He is currently serving two life sentences in Victorville, 100 miles away from LA.

Live Music

Brief Video of Danny Glover on the Cuban 5

Presentations by
Mike Garcia, President of SEIU-USWW

Cristina R. Vazquez, Workers United, Western States Regional Joint Board, International Vice-President, Regional Manager
Tony Woodley, Unite - Britain's largest trade union Former National President and lead officer on the Cuban Five for UK unions

Alicia Jrapko, US coordinator, International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban 5

For more Info: 213-284-3808

Irish and English workers say Free the Cuban Five! (2008)

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Labor Tour Features Trade Unionists From Cuba and Mexico

2011-04-05T22:15:00.000-04:00

Labor Tour Features Trade Unionists From Cuba and Mexico

The struggle against neo-liberalism spans the world

By Abayomi Azikiwe

Editor, Pan-African News Wire

DETROIT--A national tour of two trade union leaders from Cuba and Mexico is underway now in the United States. Gilda Chacon Bravo of the Federacion Sindical Mundial (SME), The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) region of the Americas from Cuba and Pipino Cuevas Velazques of the Sindicato Mexicano De Electrucistas, The Mexican Electrical Workers Union, spoke at the largest United Auto Workers (UAW) local in the United States, Local 600, on March 20 in Dearborn, right outside Detroit.

The event was sponsored by the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange which promotes travel, education and activism that fosters peace and friendship between the peoples of the United States and Cuba, Union del Barrio and the International Action Center. The presence of Gilda Chacon Bravo represented the first time that a trade union leader from Cuba had been granted a visa to enter the U.S. since 2000.

Pipino Cuevas Velazques of the SME talked about the struggle of workers in Mexico within the context of the broader challenges of neo-liberalism. Cuevas said that 44,000 electrical workers were thrown out of their jobs.

The SME leader said that the government claimed that they were lazy and unproductive. There are only 16,000 electrical workers left that are represented by the union and they are continuing to resist pay and benefit cuts.

Chacon from Cuba, who is here representing the WFTU, discussed the history of the organization that was formed in the aftermath of World War II in 1945 when there was the emergence of several new socialist states in Europe and Asia. Even after the collapse of the Eastern European socialist countries and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in the late 1980s through 1991, the WFTU would continue to function at a reduced level.

Nonetheless in 2005 the 15^th Congress was held in Cuba reviving the labor organization. The 16^th WFTU Congress is scheduled to take place in April in Greece.

According to Chacon, the WFTU supports ALBA, the Bolivarian Alliance for Latin America, that is seeking to foster economic and political cooperation among South American, Central American and Caribbean nations that is independent of the dominant influence of the United States. It was this group of nations that drafted a peace proposal to end the civil war in Libya but was dismissed by the U.S., France and the rebels fighting the Gaddafi government with the assistance of numerous imperialist states.

Chacon pointed out several advancements made in the region over the last few years. She highlighted the national literacy project in Bolivia that abolished illiteracy inside this South American state within a relatively short period of time.

In addition, Chacon noted that the Latin American School of Medicine (LASM) has made a tremendous contribution to the educational and health needs of countries throughout the southern region as well as the United States. “Already 150 students from the U.S. have graduated from the LASM,” the WFTU official said.

Also the Cuban trade unionist told the audience that the WFTU had helped launch an international labor forum for the Americas where unionists could gather and discuss pertinent issues irrespective of their political orientation. These encounters involved trade unionists from the Caribbean, Central and South America.

The WFTU and International Affairs

The WFTU is not only a trade union organization but also speaks out against the burning political issues involving conditions throughout the international community. The organization has issued statements opposing U.S. and European intervention in the North African state of Libya.

In response to the bombing of Libya carried out by several imperialist countries including the U.S., beginning on March 19, 2011, the labor organization said that “THE WFTU condemns the military aggression of the imperialists against Libya and that The World Federation of Trade Unions condemns the military aggression of the imperialists against Libya.”

The statement continued noting that “In the eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East, and North Africa these dangerous developments, the conflicts and the competition between the various imperialist compounds, are targeting the petroleum of Libya, the natural gas of the countries in North Africa and the control of strategic points rich in raw materials. This competition leads to economic and spy wars or in warfare like nowadays in Libya.”

This same statement stresses that “The European Union, the USA, France, England and their allies argue that they are attacking Libya to implement the decisions of the UN. They are hypocrites and liars!”

The WFTU asks several questions in regard to the current round of imperialist aggression: “Why are they not doing the same for the resolution about the Cyprus issue? Why are they not doing the same to implement dozens of the UN resolutions for Palestine? Why are they not doing the same to implement the resolutions of the UN to stop the embargo against Cuba?”

In the concluding paragraph, the WFTU says that “We demand the immediate ceasing of the military aggression against Libya. We express our internationalist solidarity to the people of Libya.”

In addition to the trade unionists from Cuba and Mexico, a representative of the striking Detroit Symphony Orchestra musicians attended the event at Local 600. Susan Barna Ayoub, the secretary-treasurer of the union representing the striking DSO musicians expressed solidarity with the workers in Latin America and gave some background information on the musician’s strike that has lasted for nearly six months.

While in Detroit, Chacon and Cuevas attended other events that included a social gathering held on March 19 at the home of members of the Michigan Emergency Committee Against War & Injustice on the eastside of the city. On March 20, after the speaking engagement at Local 600, the trade unionists meet with U.S. Congressman John Conyers, Jr. of Detroit who welcomed the visitors to the city.

The city of Detroit has been a center of solidarity activities with Cuba and the people of Mexico. Every year trade unionists and community activists participate in delegations to Cuba as well as Mexico. The Pastors for Peace Cuba Caravan always stops in Detroit every summer and there are trade unionists who attend the International labor conference that is held in Tijuana, Mexico every December.

Both trade union officials also spoke in Cleveland and Chicago and were scheduled to travel to New York and California for additional meetings with labor leaders and community people.

Labor Tour from San Diego

2011-04-05T21:47:00.000-04:00

The labor union activists from Cuba and Mexico arrived in San Diego on the evening of March 23. The following morning they spoke to a Chicano Studies class at San Diego City College. The students were attentive and a lively discussion followed the presentations. Evidence of the students' enthusiastic support for the goals of the tour and the work of these union leaders were the unsolicited monetary donations that these working-class students offered to the labor delegation. That evening's informal social gathering organized by Unión del Barrio attracted more youth and many Barrio Logan community members.

The next morning the tour members met at the American Friends Service Committee office with Pedro Ríos and Adriana Jasso, leaders of that organization's U.S.-Mexico Border Program, and exchanged information and ideas about the struggles of immigrant workers and other issues. The next stop was the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council office, where the tour delegation met with council head, Lorena Gonzalez. One of the topics discussed with her was the struggle of the Mexican electrical workers. Following a detailed description of the background and current situation by Pipino Cuevas Velásquez, Gonzalez indicated that the San Diego Electrical Workers local had previously passed a resolution supporting the struggle of the Mexican "electricistas." Gilda Chacón Bravo spoke about the role of the World Federation of Trade Unions, the significance of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA), and important upcoming international labor meetings in Athens, Greece, and Managua, Nicaragua. She also addressed common misconceptions about conditions in Cuba. Gonzalez expressed an interest in visiting Cuba and acknowledged that unions in the U.S. must reorient with a more struggle-based approach to confront the new and dangerous attacks on unions and the U.S. working class in general.

At the Friday evening public meeting at the World Beat Center in San Diego's Balboa Park, banners announcing "¡La Batalla de los Obreros No Tiene Fronteras! No Borders in the Workers' Struggle!" and "¡Unidos Venceremos!" [United we will win!] greeted attendees. Gloria Verdieu of the San Diego International Action Center called for a minute of silence for Leonard Weinglass, who recently died, in recognition of his long and dedicated career as a people's lawyer. Weinglass was counsel for Antonio Guerrero, one of the Cuban Five, and had successfully defended the Five before the U.S Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, a victory that was subsequently overturned by the full bench of the 11th Circuit. Following an introduction by Unión del Barrio leader Benjamín Prado and presentations by Chacón Bravo and Cuevas Velásquez, there was discussion from the floor, including an announcement about the exhibit of paintings and poetry by Cuban Five member Antonio Guerrero scheduled to open soon in San Diego at the Centro Cultural de la Raza, a nearby park building. In addition to Unión del Barrio and the International Action Center, San Diego Friends of Cuba and local jornalero [day laborer] organizers voiced their support for the goals of the tour.

2011-03-28T15:26:00.000-04:00

March Labor Tour opens! Public Schedule - Workers Struggle Beyond Borders

2011-03-15T21:38:00.000-04:00

March Labor Tour opens! Workers Struggle Beyond Borders: Uniting the Peoples of Nuestra América

Wisconsin private sector and public workers in the tens of thousands thrust their fight against a union-busting law into news front pages. More than two years ago, the Mexican Electrical Union - SME were robbed of their collective bargaining rights. Their union was declared illegal. The pro-big business Mexican government forced 44,000 workers out of their jobs at Mexico's second largest electrical power distributor, Luz y Fuerza (Central Light and Power), jeopardizing not only the workers but the income of pensioners. Find out how their struggle is like the one faced in the U.S. from the workers on the front lines in Mexico and from a Cuban representative of the World Federation of Trade Unions who will present some of the alternatives already in process in the Americas. An injury to one is an injury to all. There are no borders in the workers struggle against capitalism. Come out to learn about our common interests and struggles and the need for mutual solidarity.

Gilda Chacon Bravo,
Federacion Sindical Mundial - Americas; Cuba
Humberto Montes de Oca,
Interior Secretary, Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas (Mexican Electrical Workers Union)
Pipino Cuevas,
Secretary of Health and Social Welfare, Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas (Mexican Electrical Workers Union)
Jorge Cazares,
Representing Section VIII of the National Steering Committee of Education Workers (CNTE); Mexico (VISA DENIED by the U.S.)

You can help deliver this delegation's message of international solidarity through a financial contribution to help with travel expenses. Your donation will enable the delegation to meet with immigrant and other community-based organizations that don't have deep pockets. To make an on-line donations press the DONATE button at: LaborExchange.blogspot.com

PUBLIC EVENTS:

Thursday, March 17
Westminster Presbyterian Church
400 I St. SW
Washington, D.C. 20024
6:30 pm

Friday, March 18
UAW Local 1005
5615 Chevrolet Blvd.
Parma, OH 44130
5:00 - 6:15 pm - Reception
6:15 - 8:15 pm - Presentation

Saturday, March 19
Farm Labor Organizing Committee
1221 Broadway
Toledo, OH 43609
6:00 pm

Sunday, March 20
UAW Local 600
10550 Dix Ave.
Dearborn, MI 48120
1:00 pm

Monday, March 21
Workers United Hall
333 S. Ashland
Chicago, Il 60607
6:30 pm

Friday, March 25
World Beat Center
2100 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA 92101
6:00 - 9:00 pm

Saturday, March 26
Southern California Immigration Coalition Conference
Santee Educational Complex
1921 Maple Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90011
Noon - 4:00 pm

Sunday, March 27
Workers United
920 S. Alvarado
Los Angeles, CA 90006
6:00 pm

Tuesday, March 29
SEIU/Local 1199
330 West 43rd. St.7th Floor
New York, NY
6:30 pm
Go to http://uniondelbarrio.org/laverdad/ for downloadable leaflets for public events.
To schedule interviews or additional meetings contact: laborexchange@aol.com or 313 575-4933 or 313 355-8566; info@uniondelbarrio.org or 619-398-6648.

U.S. Labor Tour 2011 - March 15 - 31

2011-03-04T18:52:00.000-05:00

U.S. LABOR TOUR 2011

Workers Struggle Beyond Borders:

Uniting the Peoples of Nuestra America

With a growing economic crisis, the U.S. empire is waging an even larger scale offensive on the world’s working poor to keep capitalism afloat, while eliminating many essential services making it more expensive and practically unaffordable to obtain healthcare, increasing cuts to education, and foreclosing on homes at an unprecedented rate. This offensive has even made it a crime to work in the U.S. if you’re an “undocumented” worker; while state legislatures, such as Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana, are currently seeking to eliminate or weaken collective bargaining rights.

As a response to this offensive, workers from throughout the continent have decided to propose a collaborative project towards integration and solidarity beyond national borders, in search of worker’s unity that will ensure their class interest. This tour seeks to introduce the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) to workers in the United States, with the objective of seeking dialogue and presenting common areas of interest, this tour will invite workers and their organizations to the Encuentro Sindical de Nuestra América (ESNA) which will take place this year in Nicaragua. Similarly, this tour will inform worker’s how countries that today form part of the Bolivarian Alliance of Nuestra América (ALBA) have made investments in healthcare, education, food security, sports, cultural programs, while the United States cuts programs in these areas, while increasing its military spending. This tour invites workers in the US to become familiar with this continental process which seeks to build coordinated actions in our common defense of as a working class, throughout the continent and the world.

Join us in welcoming the following international guests:
- Gilda Chacon Bravo, World Federation of Trade Unions- Americas Region- Cuba
- Humberto Montes de Oca, Interior Secretary of the Mexican Electrical Workers (SME)- México
- Jorge Cázares Torres, Section VIII of the National Steering Committee of Education Workers (CNTE)- México

Dates & Cities:
March 16 & 17- Washington D.C.
March 18- Cleveland, Ohio
March 19- Toledo, Ohio
March 20- Detroit, Michigan
March 21- Chicago, Illinois
March 22- San Francisco, California
March 23- Oakland, California
March 24 & 25- San Diego, California
March 26 & 27- Los Angeles, California
March 28, 29, 30 & 31- New York, New York

Organized by:
US-Cuba Labor Exchange
laborexchange@aol.com

International Action Center
iacenter@iacenter.org

Unión del Barrio
info@uniondelbarrio.org

Endorsed by:
World Federation of Trade Unions

For more information or to endorse, please contact us at any of the e-mails listed.

VII Labor Conference concludes in Tijuana

2010-12-07T08:37:00.000-05:00

The VI U.S./Cuba/Mexico Labor Conference ended on Sunday, Dec. 5. Stay tuned for video, articles, interviews and upcoming activities.

Directions:

2010-12-01T01:08:00.005-05:00

How to Get from the San Diego International Airport to Tijuana:

Welcome to the San Diego International Airport.

Just outside the airport terminal you will find signs where the MTS #992 bus will stop and pick you up and take you downtown. These buses have luggage racks for your convenience. They run every 15 minutes from 5 a.m. to midnight. The cost is $2.25 or $1.10 for seniors 60 and over. You must have exact change.

Get off the bus downtown at the corner of Broadway and Kettner Blvd. Cross the street to the American Plaza Transit Center. Buy a trolley ticket at the ticket machine. The cost is $2.50 or $1.25 for seniors 60 and over. The trolleys run on an honor system, but hold on to your ticket for the length of the trip in case you are asked to prove that you paid. You need to board a Blue Line trolley in the direction of San Ysidro. If the front of the trolley says El Cajon, that is not the one you want. It should say San Ysidro. San Ysidro is the last trolley stop on the Blue Line south. It’s about a 45-minute ride.

When you get off the trolley, you will be at the border on the U.S. side. You can walk across the border although it’s a bit of a hike, especially if you have a significant amount of luggage (travel light!). When you have crossed the pedestrian bridge over I-5, gone through the noisy turnstiles, passed by the small Mexican customs office, where no one will stop you, you’ll come out onto a street with many stalls selling touristy type items and you will see many yellow taxis. Ignore the many solicitations you will receive.

Walk a block or two further on to find a red and white or orange and white taxi. “Necesito un taxi libre” or “Necesito un taxi colectivo” is what you will reply to anyone offering assistance. It’s always a good idea to have an agreement with the taxi driver on the price before you get in the taxi. Dollars are accepted pretty much anywhere in Tijuana.

Alternatively, when you exit the trolley at the San Ysidro station you can take a Mexicoach shuttle bus, which you should be able to locate nearby, to the Tijuana Tourist Terminal in downtown Tijuana (between 6th and 7th on Avenida Revolución). The cost for this bus is $5.00. They depart every 30 minutes. The Hotel Palacio Azteca is still a good distance from this terminal (about a 25-minute walk) so you’ll probably want to take a taxi. Again, look for the red and white or orange and white “colectivo” or “libre” taxis.

OH YES ... the hotel is

the Palacio Azteca.

Address: Blvd. Cuauhtemoc Sur #213

Here is a map...the Palacio Azteca is #5

click on map for larger view

SOLIDARITY wth the CUBAN FIVE! Free them NOW! Dec 3 in Tijuana REGISTER NOW!

2010-10-22T22:10:00.002-04:00

Interview with Mexican union leader coming to the Tijuana Conference in Dec.

2010-10-14T02:13:00.000-04:00

2010-09-11T00:54:00.000-04:00

Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America Labor Conference - VII

2010-08-13T14:59:00.000-04:00

Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/NorthAmerica Labor Conference - VII
December, 3, 4 and 5, Diciembre 3, 4 y 5, 2010
Hotel Palacio Azteca - Tijuana, Mexico

¡La lucha obrera no tiene fronteras! The workers’struggle has no borders!

Uniting America's Working Class and Increasing its Influence

U.S.-Cuba – Latin America- International Relations •
FTAA/NAFTA: the ALBA Alternative • Crises-Integration and Solidarity
Immigration between US/Latin America– Inmigración entre Estados y Latinoamérica •
Free the Cuban Five from U.S.prisons – Family visits now!

Save the date and REGISTER NOW!
online registration available at: laborexchange.blogspot.com
Hotel Registration information below
Promotional literature will be available by Labor Day!

Cuban leaders of the Confederation of Cuban Worker s (CTC) will visit Tijuana, Mexico, a city 15 minutes from the San Diego, U.S./Mexico border. This conference will give people from North America (the United States, Canada and Mexico) the opportunity to hear first hand from the Latinoamerican and Caribbean workers. Also, you will hear from Union leaders of Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Haiti, Philippines, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador and the U.S. discussing the social and labor movements in the Americas.

Lideres sindicales Cubanos de la Central de Trabajadores de Cuba (CTC), visitaran Tijuana, Mexico, una ciudad a 15 minutos de San Diego, CA. USA. de la frontera Mexico/EE.UU.. Esta conferencia le brindará la oportunidad a los trabajadores de Norte America de obtener informacion de pr imera mano sobre la situación de los trabajadores en Latinoamerica y el Caribea. Tambien estaran presentes lideres sindicalistas de: Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Haiti, Filipinas, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador y los EEUU.

Invited International Panelist /Invitados (in formation):
CUBA: Raymundo Navarro Feranadez International Relations of C.T.C.; Carmen Godinez, CTC of Cuba; VENEZUELA: Jacobo Torres de Leon Fuerza Socialista Bolivariana de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras; Roberto Caraspe y Rolando Semprum Sindicato Metro Caracas; ECUADOR: Confederacion de Trabajadores del Ecuador; BOLIVIA: Representante de C.O.B.; NICARAGUA: Frente Nacional de Trabajadores, FNT; COLOMBIA; HONDURAS; PUERTO RICO; BRAZIL: Joao Batista Lemos Secretario Adjunto de Relaciones Internacionales CTB; MEXICO; ESTADOS UNIDOS: Cristina Vasquez; Rosie Martinez SEIU Local 721

AGENDA (Follow updates as more program details become available)
Friday, December 3, 2010 - REGISTRATION afternoon
Friday, December 3, 2010 - 6 pm -11 pm
Dinner reception to welcome family of the Cuban Five. Current developments in the international movement to Free the Five Cuban Heroes unjustly held in U.S. prisons for twelve years.

Saturday December 4, 2010 - 9 am - 1 pm
Impacto de la crisis en los trabajadores. Posiciones del movimiento sindical
latinoamericano y caribeno frente a la crisis. Alternativas

International union guests will discuss the relation s between the United States, Cuba, Venezuela, Mexico,and the rest of Latin America, including the economic, financial crises, U.S. blockade against Cuba, the threats to the Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela, Bolivia and the imposition of Neoliberal policies on Mexico.

Saturday, December 4, 2010 - 3 pm - 7 pm

ALBA as a growing alternative to the FTAA. Here we will debate the defeat of the FTAA - Neoliberal Policies and the continued pursuit of the U.S. transnationals to implement free trade agreements - one by one - in Latin America. Hear and discuss how nine member countries of ALBA are responding in collective solidarity to the urgent problems of energy and food crises, education, communication, sports, and the necessities of life for those marginalized by colonialism and imperialist globalization. Find out about the newest development, how Latin America labor federations are organizing themselves for Workers Unite for a New America.

Sunday, December 5, 2010 - 9 am - 3 pm

Latin American immigration to the U.S. Here we will discuss the disastrous effects of the FTAA-politicas Neoliberales imposed by the U.S. government and U.S. transnationals on Latin America that destroys the Latin American economy and forces millions of workers to emigrate to the U.S. where they become modern day slaves, have their human rights violated and are humiliated.

SPONSORS (partial):
U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange
Federacion Sindical Mundial
International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five;
International Action Center ( IAC)
Union del Barrio

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Conference Registration/ Datos para su inscripción a la Conferencia:

Name/Nombre:___________________________________________________________________

Address/Direccion: ________________________________________________________________

Phone/Telefono:_________________________________________________ Fax:______________

Email/Correo Electronico: ___________________________________________________________

Union/Organization /Sindicato: Organizacion______________________________________________

[ ] Enclosed is my registration fee of $ 80 U.S.dollars (Friday - Saturday - Sunday) including Friday "Free the Five" program and dinner.
or [ ] $55 for Saturday and Sunday only.
[ ] I would like to give a donation of $________ for a low-income participant.

[ ] Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 80 dolares US (incluye una cena especial – viernes – por Los Cincos)
y quisiera aportar la cantidad de $_______para aquellos participantes de bajo ingreso.
o [ ] Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 55 dolares, sabado y domingo solamente.

Make checks payable to: Labor Exchange//Haga los chekes pagables a: Labor Exchange

US/Cuba Labor Exchange
P.O. BOX 39188
Redford MI 48239
Phone: (313) 575 4933
Email: laborexchange @ aol.com

Reservations can be made at: Reservaciones de Hotel:

Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila 22400 Tijuana, Mexico
*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descuento al:
Cuba Labor Conference to get the special price:

Single/Sencilla Room $81 U.S.Dollars *
Double/Doble Room $116 U.S. Dollars*
*(Room rates include two breakfasts and one Saturday dinner per person)
Saturday: Coffee and sweets all day
*(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena por persona)
Sabado: Cafe y bocadillos todo el dia

Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservacion lo antes possible.
*If you have a problem please call 313 575 4933 or laborexchange@aol.com

2010 International Labor Conference in Tijuana, Mexico - Dec. 3, 4, 5

2010-07-16T22:02:00.002-04:00

Register for the Conference online now! Reserve your hotel room then click on the DONATE button. Your $80 registration includes dinner on Friday and the conference registration. Hotel registration at Hotel Palacio Azteca includes dinner on Saturday and breakfast on Saturday and Sunday.

Promotional literature will be available prior to Labor Day.

Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/NorthAmerica Labor Conference - VII
December 3, 4 and 5, Diciembre 3, 4 y 5, 2010
¡La lucha obrera no tiene fronteras! The workers’struggle has no borders!
Uniting America's Working Class and Increasing its Influence
U.S.-Cuba – Latin America- International Relations • FTAA/NAFTA: the ALBA Alternative • Crises-Integration and Solidarity Immigration between US/Latin America– Inmigración entre Estados y Latinoamérica • Free the Cuban Five from U.S.prisons – Family visits now!

Reservations can be made at: Reservaciones de Hotel:

Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila 22400 Tijuana, Mexico
*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660

Single/Sencilla Room $81 U.S.Dollars *
Double/Doble Room $116 U.S. Dollars*
*(This will included two breakfasts and one dinner per person)
Saturday: Coffee and sweets
(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena por persona)
Sabado: Cafe y bocadillos

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descuento al:
Cuba Labor Conference to get the discounted price.

Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservacion lo antes possible.

(If you have a problem please call 313 575 4933 or laborexchange@aol.com)

July 8 - Friendshipment Caravan - Detroit

2010-07-05T17:36:00.001-04:00

"From My Altitude" in Detroit opens June 23

2010-06-18T12:00:00.000-04:00

"From My Altitude" who are the Cuban 5?

2010-06-18T11:44:00.001-04:00

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA March 26 and 27

2010-03-12T23:38:00.002-05:00

INTERNATIONAL LABOR SPEAKING TOUR |
GIRA INTERNACIONAL DE SINDICATOS

TOWARDS WORKING CLASS & CONTINENTAL UNITY! |
¡HACIA LA UNIDAD CONTINENTAL DE LA CLASE OBRERA!

Unión del Barrio and the International Action Center have joined efforts with the Detroit-based U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange and the World Federation of Trade Unions to host a national tour of Latin American labor leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean, to Southern California.

Unión del Barrio y el Centro de Acción Internacional han unido esfuerzos con las siguientes organizaciones; Intercambio Laboral EEUU/Cuba basados en la ciudad de Detroit y la Federación Mundial de Sindicatos, para servir como anfitriones a la visita de representantes de sindicatos de países de America Latina y el Caribe, al sur de California.

JOIN US IN WELCOMING: | ÚNASE CON NOSOTROS PARA DARLE LA BIENVENIDA A:

Gilda Chacon Bravo, Central de Trabajadores de Cuba (CTC)-CUBA
Ronal Quesada Zamora, Unión Nacional de Empleados de la Caja y la Seguridad Social (UNDECA)- COSTA RICA
Efrain Valentín Yepez Concha, Central General de Trabajadores de Peru (CGTP) – PERU

Flier click on link|volante haga clic, http://uniondelbarrio.org/pdf/ALBAlabortour_socal_032010.pdf

FORUM & DISCUSSION | FORO Y DIALOGO
3 STOPS IN SO. CALIFORNIA | 3 REUNIONES EN EL SUR DE CALIFORNIA

SAN DIEGO, CA | Friday, March 26 | 6-8 pm
Teamster’s Union Hall | 2731 “B” St. | San Diego, CA 92102

————————–
****PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE****
LOS ANGELES, CA | Saturday, March 27th
Santee Educational Complex
1921 South Maple Ave. | Los Angeles, CA 90011 | 6-8pm
—————————
LOS ANGELES, CA | Saturday, March 27th
SEIU Local 721 | 500 S. Virgil Ave Los Angeles, CA | 1 pm-4pm
—————————-
for more information or to endorse | para mas información o para patrocinar
call or write | llame o escriba

San Diego: 619-398-6648 | Los Angeles: 323-602-3480 | info@uniondelbarrio.org

2010-03-11T19:30:00.037-05:00

Latin American Labor Leaders
Tour the U.S.

Public Event Schedule
and Contact Info
Donations needed and welcome. Use the DONATE button on this page or contribute at the event in your area.

Gilda Chacón Bravo, (not in U.S. as of 3/23)
Central de Trabajadores de Cuba, Federacion Sindical Mundial—Americas—
CUBA

Ronald Quesada Zamora,
Secretaría de Nacionales e Internacionales de UNDECA—
COSTA RICA

March 17, 18—Washington, D.C.

Contact:

Eben Levey 202-258-8435,
eblevey at gmail dot com, or

Carl Gentile 240-285-6519,

1187 at comcast dot net

March 19—Philadelphia

7 pm SEIU Local 668

1924 Spring Garden St., 19130

Contact: International Action Center
Phone: 215-729-5695
Email: PhillyIAC@peoplesmail.net

March 21—Cleveland

3 pm Local 1005 UAW

5615 Chevrolet Blvd., 44130

March 22—Toledo, OH

7 pm Farm Labor Organizing Committee
FLOC-AFL-CIO
1221 Broadway St., Toledo, OH 43609
For more information: bmaya1 at floc.com
Phone: 419-243-3456

March 23—Detroit Metro

7 pm Bookstore

5920 Second Ave., 48202

March 24—Chicago CANCELLED

7 pm U.E. Hall,
37 S. Ashland Ave., 60607

Contact: 773-376-7521 or email: Stansfieldsmith at yahoo dot com

March 26—San Diego

6 pm Teamster’s Hall
2731 “B” St., 92102

Contact: Union del Barrio: 619-398-6648
or IAC: 619-255-4585

March 27—Los Angeles

1-4 pm SEIU 721
500 S. Virgil, 90020

6-8 pm Santee Educational Complex
1921 S. Maple Ave., 90011

Contact: Union del Barrio: 323-602-3480

or IAC: 323-306-6240

March 28—Dallas

6 pm Pan-African Connection Bookstore and Resource Center

612 E. Jefferson Blvd, Dallas, Texas 75203
Contact: Akwete Tyehimba at 214-943-8262
Email: panafric at airmail dot net

March 29 - New York

6-9 pm SEIU 1199

310 W. 43 St., Auditorium

Sponsored by: SEIU1199 Latin American Caribbean Committee

RSVP: Luis Matos 917-570-0506

Latin American Caribbean Committee (LACDC)

For general information, to schedule an interview or additional event,
call: 313-575-4933.

Sponsored by:
U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange, World Federation of Trade Unions, International Action Center and supported by organizations and individuals across the U.S.

2010-01-04T21:47:00.000-05:00

Dec. 6 Migration and Immigration at SIXTH U.S./Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico Tijuana Labor Conference

2010-01-04T19:43:00.002-05:00

Tijuana Conference Sunday Session

The conference’s Sunday session focused on issues pertaining to immigrant workers and their struggles. The opening speaker was Ben Prado, a leader of Unión del Barrio. Prado asserted the right of Indigenous people, in particular the Mexican people, to retake possession of the land of what is now known as the U.S. Southwest. He denounced the racist U.S. policy of Manifest Destiny, which attempted to justify the genocidal policies of the historic European invasion, which wrested total control of the North American continent from its former inhabitants.

Addressing the economic crisis, he said, “We know this crisis. We have been living it for more than 15 years.” He described the former circular migration, where Mexican workers working on this side of the border returned to their families periodically. He pointed out that this pattern has been replaced, since 1994 when the militarization of the border began, by the need for workers to bring their families with them, in the face of daunting fences and armed border guards.

Prado denounced the Democratic/Republican consensus in Washington, D.C., for superexploitation of the most vulnerable workers. Migrating workers do the hardest work for the lowest pay. At the border, the so-called War on Terror becomes the so-called War on Drug Trafficking. But the strategy remains the same: criminalizing the working class.

Another topic of concern, he pointed out, is the privatization of prisons with its accompanying private investment in prison industries. Working for pennies a day, prisoners are now producing a vast array of commodities for the capitalist market.

Prado concluded his remarks describing the horrific character of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) raids, where families are broken up and children become wards of the state. “This is state terrorism,” he emphasized. “The challenge is organizing our communities. The change that’s happening in Latin America will be our guide.” His concluding thought: The re-election of Evo Morales in Bolivia this weekend is cause for great optimism.

The next speaker was Gloria Salcedo of Hermandad Mexicana Nacional. She paid tribute to Bert Corona, a great labor leader and organizer of immigrant workers, as someone who taught workers how to struggle. She asserted the urgent need for legalization of undocumented workers. This would mean, she explained, political, economic and religious power, something that all human beings want. The victories against racism, such as the election of Barack Obama are the result of our struggles, she noted. But we must continue the struggle. We can’t rest. We don’t know what the politicians are doing. We must organize for May 1.

Teresa Gutierrez, representing the New York May 1 Coalition and the International Migrants’ Alliance, opened with the observation that everyone should be proud that our pressure forced Lou Dobbs, the racist TV commentator who focused many of his attacks on immigrant workers, off the air. She then noted the worldwide character of the migration nightmare: an estimated 350,000,000 working class people who have been forced to leave their homes, due both to economic pressures and the environmental changes that are producing what is coming to be known as “climate immigration.”

Gutierrez accused the big bankers of responsibility for the deaths of unknown numbers of immigrants. She pointed out how, in New York City, the billionaire rulers and their political lackeys are using the excuse of the economic crisis for their failure to provide either equal marriage rights or legalization for undocumented workers. But polls have shown that most people are for these rights. So this ruse is very dangerous. She added that the government has the upper hand right now because there is no mass movement. “But we can’t let them divide our class,” she emphasized.

And it’s the same with international issues, she commented. “The Republicans openly supported the Honduran coup. And what was Zelaya’s crime from their point of view? He wanted to raise the minimum wage in Honduras so workers wouldn’t have to come to the U.S. to earn a living wage. Hypocrites! We confronted Sen. Charles Schumer in East Harlem because his immigration proposal is terrible. We were polite. He wasn’t. He said he would meet with immigration rights groups. He hasn’t.

“The only thing we can count on is mobilizing in the streets. We need to organize in a new way because there is a crisis and they are trying to divide us, to get us to fight each other. We have to raise the war and the sham election in Honduras. Threats against Cuba and Venezuela must be raised as well as the potential destruction of the planet. Take the advice of the Cuban comrades yesterday to raise the political level. It won’t be easy.

The International Migrants’ Alliance was put together by the Filipino comrades. It’s clear about being anti-imperialist. So we look for ways to unite all the global struggles. As our Colombian comrades told us yesterday, we have to use technology. We need an international May Day, except for Israel. One day May Day will be a worldwide strike!”

Joy de Guzman, representing the Global Council for International Migrants and the International League of Peoples Struggle, spoke next. She observed that, in common with all the peoples of Latin America, the Filipino people have a terrible historic legacy of colonization. “But really, it’s imperialism,” she noted. Presently, Filipino immigrant workers are scattered in 196 other countries and the remittances they send home constitute a very important part of the Filipino economy. These workers face long hours, low wages, sexual abuse and all the other common features of superexploitation. They are mostly unorganized. They need our help to become organized so that they can challenge their exploitation.

Martín López Ortiz, speaking for the Frente Amplia de Izquierda Social, announced an ambitious project, already underway, for a Latin American sanctuary for workers in the Mexican state of Michoacán. The sanctuary will run on an economy based on sharing rather than private profit. The workers of Michoacán will no longer have to cross borders to survive and the sanctuary will welcome all migrant workers as an alternative to forced immigration.

John Parker, Los Angeles organizer of the Bail Out the People Movement, spoke on the pressing issue of Black/Brown unity. Historically, he explained, unpaid slave labor allowed U.S. society to grow strong economically. “We African Americans share this reality of superexploitation with immigrant workers. It’s an important basis for unity. Another point worth mulling over is the contact that most immigrant workers maintain with family and friends in their home countries. Suppose the Spanish plans of colonial conquest had been revealed in time to the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. With modern communication, the situation for cooperation among workers of different nationalities is much more favorable today.

“Right now, U.S. imperialism has its eyes on Africa, in particular the newly discovered oil deposits off the coast of Ghana and around the Horn of Africa. So already under Obama there is more U.S. military activity in Africa, sometimes involving 30 nations at a time. What will African Americans think when they see their African relatives being killed? They will be very angry. The government will respond with more domestic repression, more state terrorism. So we need unity with Native, Asian, Latino and white workers.”

Parker urged Black and Brown workers to find opportunities to stand in solidarity with each other’s struggles, not just for the immediate benefit, but also understanding what a powerful example such actions are for the rest of our class. “With class unity,” he concluded, “our victory is assured.”

It was a great honor for the conference to have among its attendees José González, representing the Binational Front of Indigenous Organizations. He opened his presentation with the observation, “I am a stranger in my own land.” He came to the U.S. from Oaxaca, Mexico, out of necessity and was a farm worker for seven years. He recounted how hard crossing the border was. Referring to his co-panelist Ben Prado, he said, “I took Ben last month to meet my brothers living in a canyon.” He observed that what goes on in the agricultural fields is modern slavery. “We have a common enemy,” he concluded. “Capitalism!”

An earlier speaker at the conference had referred to the kidnapping of a Tijuana union activist on Dec. 4. At the conclusion of the Sunday session, Dr. Pedro Salcedo Guzmán of the Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores Sociales took the floor to ask that conference attendees sign a petition demanding an immediate investigation into the abduction. Clearly angry at this act of anti-worker terrorism in Tijuana, Salcedo Guzmán assured the conference that such acts would not silence the spirits of Martí, Che and other revolutionary heroes who were such an inspiration to continue the struggle for all the victims asking for justice.

Other speakers who took the floor at the conference’s ending included Fernando Velázquez, who reminded the audience of the need to take advantage of the technological possibilities of spreading revolutionary ideas, such as those expressed at the conference, Carmen Valadez of the Tijuana Workers’ Information Center (CITTAC), who spoke briefly on the continuing struggle of the people of Atenco and recent attacks on Mexican Indigenous people.

Finally, Sabrina Green of the International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal took the floor to speak on the current, very dangerous legal situation facing this globally recognized political prisoner. Dec. 9 is the 28th anniversary of his frameup by the Philadelphia police. He is still on death row and the racist state is still seeking to have him executed, totally unconcerned with the mountain of evidence demonstrating his innocence in the death of a police officer, evidence that has never been allowed in court.

It was a politically intense weekend. Though clearly not yet at this early stage a body worthy of the label “workers’ council,” or one capable of challenging on the international level imperialist political authority, these profoundly serious deliberations certainly set in many ways a minimum standard for the workers’ councils that are sure to follow.

Dec. 5 at SIXTH U.S./Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North-South America Labor Conference, Dec. 4-6, 2009 Tijuana, Mexico

2010-01-03T15:32:00.007-05:00

Tijuana Conference Saturday Session Addresses the Capitalist Economic Crisis and Multiple Issues of Importance to Workers

By Bob McCubbin

U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange member Ignacio Meneses opened the Saturday morning session with a reflection on revolutionary Cuba’s success, even during the darkest hours of the “special period” following the collapse of the Soviet Union, in maintaining its cordial relations with workers’ organizations all over the world and its refusal to reduce in any measure the many beneficial social programs enjoyed by its people. He noted, however, that Cuba and the nine-member Latin America ALBA alliance face a new resurgence of reaction: the precedent created by the Honduran coup against President Zelaya, the presence of the U.S. 4th Fleet in Latin American waters and the seven new U.S. military bases in Colombia.

The first speaker on the morning panel was Larry Holmes, whom Meneses, in his introduction, characterized as a leader in the U.S. workers’ movement for many years. Holmes opened with special praise for the Cuban comrades: “No other people have played a stronger role in supporting Black people in the U.S.,” he noted. Holmes went on to emphasize the seriousness of the economic crisis in the U.S. and warned against the danger of inaction. He stressed the need to be in the streets, to push the unions into action and to embrace the unemployed, the immigrant workers and the poor. “Let me remind you,” he concluded, “that last year during this conference we got the news about the Republic Windows and Doors takeover. When the workers stand up, they win!”

Following Holmes, José Rivera of the Frente Amplio de Solidaridad y Lucha of Puerto Rico spoke. He reported with pride that Puerto Rican workers have expressed their solidarity with the Mexican electrical workers who were recently fired by Mexican President Vicente Calderón with a huge protest at the Mexican consulate in San Juan. He also described the attempts by Puerto Rican Gov. Luis Fortuño to impose neoliberal solutions for the Puerto Rican economic crisis. These “solutions” include the firing of 30,000 workers, something the governor had previously promised not to do. Some 50 organizations, including 18 unions, have responded to the call to fight back. There have been dramatic mass actions including marches and the mass takeover of the San Juan banking district. “We are being called terrorists and they are threatening to use the Patriot Act against us,” Rivera said. The workers’ response, he suggested, must be a general strike.

Next, Raymundo Navarro, director of foreign relations of the Cuban CTC (Confederation of Cuban Workers), spoke. He commented on the importance Cubans attach to the international solidarity they’ve always received. He emphasized that without it, he didn’t know what would happen to Cuba. He estimated that the U.S. imposed blockade against Cuba has cost them $96 billion. An added obstacle imposed by nature, the fierce hurricanes Cuba has had to contend with, have caused $10 billion in damages. A third difficulty they presently face is the world economic crisis. Navarro said that Cubans appreciate the difference in tone of the new U.S. administration, but, though the methods are now different, the objectives remain the same. There is still a demand for concessions on our part and we reject that, he emphasized.

He urged the audience to remain alert, as Cuba prepares for more sophisticated methods to be used against it. “In Cuba they will find a poor and humble people, but with much dignity,” he added. He enumerated six Cuban demands: the U.S. must lift the blockade, free the Cuban Five, eliminate Radio and TV Martí, stop financing internal subversion, return Guantánamo to Cuban control and repeal the Cuban Adjustment Act.

Elaborating on the economic problems Cuba faces, he pointed out that world market prices for nickel and sugar, important Cuban exports, are way down, while the price of foods that Cuba must import are up. Reflective of the general orientation of Cuba’s workers’ government, when low world market sugar prices resulted in job displacement for 150,000 sugar cane workers, Fidel Castro said, “Let the workers study and continue to be paid.” An added factor that highlights Cuba’s economic vulnerability is the decreasing ratio of active workers maintaining retired workers. Fewer children and longer life spans represent yet another, though related, economic problem.

With understandable pride, given the harsh economic realities, Navarro concluded his talk with a challenge to the deriders of Cuban socialism: “We graduated 186,000 students this year. We openly invite the imperialists and their bootlickers to find one student who didn’t get a job.” Unemployment in Cuba is 1.8 percent despite the world economic crisis.

Representing the Venezuelan workers’ movement on the Saturday morning panel was union leader Rolando Semprum. He had with him five Venezuelan baseball caps, which he presented to Alicia Jrapko, asking that she pass them on to the five imprisoned Cuban heroes.

Semprum pointed out that explaining all of the missions created by President Chávez would take a long time, but he was clearly proud of the countrywide literacy program undertaken with Cuba’s assistance, the national health program, also undertaken with Cuban help, the national agenda in favor of women, and the strong solidarity between the people and the military. Semprum reminded the audience several times that the overriding U.S. goal is seizure of Venezuelan oil and other natural resources. He cited the U.S. military presence in neighboring Colombia and internal subversion financed by the U.S. as major threats. As a leader of the subway workers union, he is well aware of the potential for sabotage of public transportation, pointing out that two million people a day use the Caracas subway system and damage to the system would create an immediate economic crisis.

A further problem is continuing capitalist control of the major media. To get around this problem, there is strong government support for local, community-based media, mass use of inexpensive cell phones and a government supported mass organization called Madres del Barrio involving women in the working class communities who are paid for security and other community-based work.

CTC leader Carmen Godinez took the floor next to ask for conference endorsement of a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama. The letter, although diplomatically phrased, was a strong demand that the Cuban Five be released from U.S. prisons and that until that could be arranged, that their families be granted visas to visit them. All present were in firm agreement.

Two Colombian labor leaders with the country’s national telephone union, Óscar Gustavo Penagos and Segundo Hernández Cañón, opened the second Saturday. session. They come from a country where more than 3,800 union leaders and labor activists have been assassinated since the mid 1980s. (henningcenter.berkeley.edu)

Penagos explained how Colombian society is presently ruled by criminals. President Álvaro Uribe has been an open promoter of paramilitarism. Many former members of the national legislature are in prison based on proven links to the paramilitary forces. The former chief of intelligence, now in prison, was providing the paramilitaries with lists of progressives to kill. Drug trafficking and money laundering continue to be big business.

The present U.S./Colombia military treaty is an agreement between the world’s biggest drug producer and its biggest drug consumer. In addition to the use of seven new military bases, the treaty gives the U.S. control of Colombia’s telecommunications network. The Colombia military has, in fact, become an appendage of the Pentagon. One of the new airbases under the control of the U.S. is so huge that three aircraft can lift off at the same time. Such facilities are not needed for combating guerrillas or drug traffickers. The seven U.S. bases are clearly designed for international espionage and war. They are bases of a new type with the ability to threaten all of Latin America and can also be used as jumping off places for attacks on other continents, Africa in particular.

Penagos proposed a May Day solidarity action by Venezuela and Ecuador on the border with Colombia where the imperialist puppets killed comandante Raúl Reyes. He asked for a conference resolution rejecting the seven new military bases, emphasizing, “Uribe is a puppet of U.S. imperialism! Long live the unity of the workers of the world!”

Hernández Cañón pointed out that anyone with a cell phone anywhere in the world can now be monitored by the imperialists. He also noted that TVs are now going to be made interactive. However, he added, the people are learning how to use this technology against the imperialists. He concluded his presentation with a succinct characterization of the present Colombian situation: “vende patria” – sold out country.

Representing the Frente Amplia de Izquierda Social de México, Gabriela Santos Romero described her group as an umbrella of 53 progressive organizations and unions in struggle. She stressed the need for national and international unity among working people and described the position of the Mexican electrical workers, the Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas, as very difficult right now given the government’s neoliberal attempts to privatize electricity and other utilities. Nevertheless, the work stoppage in September and the unity shown against the government on the International Day of Action on Dec. 3 in solidarity with the 45,000 SME workers who have lost their jobs show the importance of a broad front to fight against the empire.

The moderator for the third session on Saturday was Cheryl LaBash, a key organizer with the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange.

The first speaker was Carlos Mejía of the Frente Resistencia Hondureña. Mejía saluted the Cuban Five and reminded everyone that we must not just oppose the Honduran coup but also stand with all the workers’ organizations of the world. He pointed out that a mere 21 percent of Honduran voters participated in the recent sham election on Nov. 29. And at least 661 people have been murdered up to the date of the election, with four of his comrades seized and disappeared on election day. Mejía called for unity of all the anti-coup forces.

Celina Benítez of the Coalición por la Paz in

Honduras

witnessed the Honduran election at first hand. “We were in Honduras, in part, to report human rights violations. I was also there to speak with the people. My life and the lives of my comrades were threatened.” Benítez continued: “In the ‘80s I heard stories about El Salvador. Now I’ve seen it in Honduras.”

Bayan USA -- the New Patriotic Alliance -- was represented by Kuusela Hilo, who had just returned from the Philippines. Hilo spoke in front of a projection of a newspaper front-page article announcing the intention of Melissa Rojas, Los Angeles Bayan coordinator, to take the Filipino authorities who tortured her to court. Hilo began by noting her membership in the International League of Peoples Struggle and explained how that group organizes Cuba solidarity meetings that are attended by hundreds of students.

Describing the present situation in the Philippines, she said that a Katrina-like situation exists there due to recent terrible natural disasters. Over one million people have been permanently displaced and more than 3,000 people are forced to leave the country every day to find work. But a disturbing human rights crisis is also in progress, with 1,013 cases of extrajudicial killings, 1,010 cases of torture and 202 cases of forced disappearances. All this repression is being funded by U.S. imperialism, which views the Philippines, just as it does Colombia, as a strategic area and has poured in over $1 billion in military aid in the last 10 years and has plans to increase that aid. It also has troops permanently based there, in direct violation of Philippine sovereignty.

Hilo also spoke of a recent massacre in Maguindanao, in the south of the country, where 64 civilians including 30 journalists were killed. The people, some of whom had already received death threats, were on their way to file for an election and assumed, because among their delegation there were many women, that they would not be attacked. In this case a local war lord was responsible although the weapons used were supplied by the military.

Hilo urged organizations present at the conference to send statements to the Arroyo government demanding justice for the victims of the Maguindanao massacre.

Clarence Thomas, speaking on behalf of the International Longshore Workers Union Local 10 and the Million Worker March Movement, gave an inspiring history of his union’s international solidarity actions and support for progressive struggles in the U.S. He urged that special attention be paid to the most oppressed workers, people of color and immigrants. He pointed out that support for May Day in the U.S. was reawakened by the most exploited sector of the working class, the immigrant workers. Labor, he insisted, must look beyond the scope of business unionism. The way forward for the working class, he emphasized, is for labor to become part of the vanguard for social justice.

Service Employees International Union Local 721 activist Luz Díaz spoke next with a personal history. Her Mexican grandfather, running for mayor in a town in the state of Jalisco 40 years ago, courageously defended the right of the Indigenous people of the area to own the land they worked and urged that they be allowed to receive free education. For these progressive stands he was murdered. Observing that things haven’t changed much, she noted that a Tijuana union leader had been kidnapped that very morning. Continuing her personal history, she told how her mother was the victim of a common trick of the bosses. Rather than pay her for her labor picking grapes, the boss, knowing she was undocumented, called the immigration authorities on her just before payday. Díaz called unions necessary tools in the fight for a decent life.

The last speaker for this session, before the floor was opened for a spirited open mike discussion, was Cristina Vázquez, of Workers United. Her union affiliated this year with SEIU. She acknowledged all the unions present, she said, but especially those from other countries, who had come at great expense and sacrifice and often, danger. She commented that this year of global economic crisis has been the hardest for negotiating new labor contracts. But it is also the beginning of the fightback. “We know how to organize,” she affirmed.

At this point in the program, Raymundo Navarro took the floor to offer special recognition, on behalf of the CTC, of Ike Nahem of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and Ignacio Meneses of the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange for their long exemplary records of Cuba solidarity work.

Carmen Godinez of the CTC then offered a short lesson on the history of ALBA, the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas, and its accomplishments. She characterized it as an integration that benefits the masses with its goal of eliminating inequalities. The basic idea is to increase the independence of its members from the imperialist financial system. Created through the initiative of Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro, it now counts nine nations of Latin America and the Caribbean as members.

Opening discussion from the floor, Jefferson Azevedo of the Los Angeles International Action Center spoke briefly on the necessity for solidarity with the struggling people of Palestine. Jorge Mercado of the Frente Farabundo Martí de Liberación Nacional of Los Angeles raised the need to rescue working class history, such as the heroes of the Haymarket Massacre in Chicago in 1886, and revive May 1 as the international workers’ day. Mercado also noted Hugo Chávez’s proposal for the creation of a 5th Workers’ International.

Other topics of discussion raised from the floor were the present international role of Brazil, the problem of a generally conservative union leadership in the U.S., the need for more political education geared toward workers, the current situation in Haiti, the need to make imperialist war a working class issue and the need for unions in the U.S. to stop handing over the workers’ union dues to the Democratic and Republican parties. We need, Ben Prado of the Unión del Barrio urged, to start offering financial support to socialist candidates for public office. On the topic of making war a working class issue, Teresa Gutierrez of the New York City May 1 Coalition offered an incident at an ant-Honduran coup protest where there was, at first, resistance on the part of a few to the idea of also raising the U.S. war against Afghanistan. But they were turned around by the argument that Hondurans and Afghans are fighting the same bully. Finally, Cristina Vázquez urged the assembly, “Promise yourself to bring one more person or organization to this conference next year!”
wwphotos credit: Bob McCubbin (workers.org)

Dec. 4 at SIXTH U.S./Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North-South America Labor Conference, Dec. 4-6, 2009 Tijuana, Mexico

2010-01-03T14:49:00.012-05:00

wwphoto credit: Bob McCubbin, workers.org

Friday Evening Session Demands Freedom for the Cuban Five - unjustly held in U.S. prisons

By Alicia Jrapko

Just a few days before the resentencing hearing for Fernando González and Ramón Labañino, an international event in support of the Cuban Five took place in the city of Tijuana, the largest border entry point into the United States. This activity, a Friday evening event, was the beginning of the weekend-long Sixth Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North American Labor conference organized by the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange, which brought together union representatives from Latin America, the Philippines, Canada and the U.S. One of the reasons this conference has been held in Tijuana for the past six years has been to enable Cubans to participate. People attending the conference came from cities across the U.S. including New York, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Oakland, San Diego, Houston and others. Many residents of Mexico also came from several Baja California cities including Mexicali, Ensenada, Tijuana and towns throughout northern Mexico.

The Cuban Five solidarity event started with messages of solidarity from the families of the Cuban Five and an update of the case by Silvia García, representing the Cuban National Assembly of the Peoples Power. Carmen Godinez from the Confederation of Cuban Workers (CTC) talked about the support for the Cuban Five within the organized labor movements worldwide. Claudia Morcom, a former Michigan county court judge, talked about several projects that are taking place in the city of Detroit in support of the Five. Alicia Jrapko from the International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five presented a short video about the case featuring Alice Walker that brought tears to the eyes of many in the audience. Jrapko also talked about the expanding worldwide solidarity campaign to free the Cuban Five heroes as well as the struggle to gain visitation rights for Olga Salanueva and Adriana Pérez, the wives of René González and Gerardo Hernández, who have been continuously denied visas by the U.S. government.

The event received considerable media coverage that helped raise awareness about the case of the Cuban Five including interviews on four radio stations and three television channels. On Thursday, Dec. 3, a press conference was held in Mexicali and brought the information to a wide audience from cities across Baja California as well as cities and towns on the other side of the border. A program from KPFK Pacifica in Los Angeles featured an update on the case and announced the Tijuana evening event and the weekend conference.

Two Mexican members of the International Commission for the Right of Family Visits, Cuauhtémoc Amescua Dromundo, professor of Political Sciences of the Autonomous University of Mexico and Hilda Venegas Negrete, sent solidarity messages to the event. Hilda Venegas Negrete, a member of the National Council of the Union of Jurists of Mexico and the League for the Defense of Human Rights concluded her message with a saying from a sacred book of the Mayan people, "They ripped out our fruits, they cut off our branches, they burned out the trunks of our trees but they could not kill our roots."

The Tijuana event for the Cuban Five was organized by the US/Cuba Labor Exchange

and the International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five.

www.thecuban5.org.
wwphoto credit: Bob McCubbin, workers.org

2009-11-11T12:18:00.001-05:00

Dec. 4, 5, 6 in Tijuana!
The SIXTH Cuba/Venezuela/North America/Latin America Labor Conference - register and pay now online!

For anyone planning to register at the door - please don't wait to make your hotel reservations at Hotel Palacio Azteca. Call Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660.
Be sure to ask for the special rate for CUBA LABOR CONFERENCE.

Want to Register and pay online with charge card or paypal account? Here's how at http://laborexchange.blogspot.com/

1) Click on DONATE button (upper right at laborexchange.blogspot.com), follow instructions
2) Conference Registration is $55 (an additional $30 donation [$20 for residents of Mexico] is requested for the special Free the Five dinner on Friday with Olga Salanueva, spouse of Cuban Five hero Rene Gonzalez)
3) Enter the dollar amount - $55 or $85 [$75 for residents of Mexico] (or more, if you can afford an additional donation to help with costs.) You and the Labor Exchange will both receive an email receipt that will be used at the conference to confirm your payment.
4) Send the info on the form below to laborexchange@peoplesmail.net

THEN - Make your hotel registration at Hotel Palacio Azteca, request the Cuba Labor Conference rate that includes breakfast and Saturday dinner (Send your hotel confirmation number to laborexchange@peoplesmail.net) (If you have any problems with reserving a hotel room, please let us know - call: 313 575 4933.)

Conference Registration/ Datos para su inscripción a la Conferencia:

Name/Nombre:___________________________

Address/Direccion:_________________________

City,State, Zip/Ciudad, Estado, Zona postal:________

Phone/Telefono:_____________Fax:__________

Email/Correo Electronico:____________________

Union/OrganizationSindicato:_________________

[ ] Enclosed is my registration fee of $ 55 U.S. dollars ([ ] additional donation $30/$20 requested - special Free the Five dinner, Friday)

[ ] I would like to give a donation of $ ________ for a low-income participant.

[ ] Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 55 dolares US y quisiera aportar la cantidad de $_______para aquellos participantes de bajo ingreso. ([ ] donación adicional - 30/20 dolares – una cena especial – viernes – por Los Cincos)

Make checks payable to: Labor Exchange
Haga los chekes pagables a: Labor Exchange

US/Cuba Labor Exchange ● P.O. BOX 39188 ● Redford MI 48239 ● Phone/Fax: (313) 575 4933
● Email: laborexchange@aol.com

Reservations can be made at: Reservaciones de Hotel:

Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila
22400 Tijuana, Mexico

*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660
Single/Sencilla Room $80 U.S. Dollars
Double/Doble Room $114 U.S. Dollars
(This will included two breakfasts and one dinner)
(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena)

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descueanto al:
Cuba Labor Conference to get the discounted price.
Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservación lo antes possible.
*If you have a problem please call 313 575 4933 or laborexchange@aol.com

See who's coming to Tijuana!

2009-11-11T11:14:00.001-05:00

2009-11-11T11:08:00.001-05:00

International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban

Olga Salanueva, Wife of Cuban Five Hero to attend Tijuana Conference

Olga Salanueva with daughter Ivette Gonzalez Salanueva

As part of the Sixth Annual Labor Conference in Tijuana Mexico, a special evening in support of the Cuban Five will be featuring Olga Salanueva, wife of Rene Gonzalez, one of the Cuban Five political prisoners held in the US.

The Cuban Five were arrested in 1998 and accused of conspiracy and other related charges. They were monitoring terrorists groups in Miami to protect the lives of Cuban and American citizens as well. They are serving long and outrageous sentences in five US prisons spread out around the country. The Five are considered heroes in their country and enjoy the support from thousands of people around the world. While these five innocent men are languishing in US prisons, admitted terrorists such as Luis Posada Carriles continue to be protected by past and this new administration.

In addition to the unjust sentences against the Five, the US government has denied two of them the basic human right to be visited by their wives.

Olga Salanueva and Adriana Perez, wife of Rene Gonzalez and Gerardo Hernandez respectively have not been able to travel to the US to see their husbands. Adriana has not seen Gerardo for 11 years and Olga has not seen Rene for 9 years.

JOIN US IN A SPECIAL DINNER AND PROGRAM

The program will also include a short video of Alice Walker, author of "The Color Purple," from the recent opening of an art exhibit of original paintings by Antonio Guerrero in Berkeley, California.

Friday December 4th, from 6pm-11pm
Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd. Cuauhtémoc Sur #213 Colonia Dávila
Tijuana, Mexico

To get tickets on line go to: laborexchange.blogspot.com
Or to learn more about this event contact info@thecuban5.org

Organized by the The International Committee for Freedom of the Cuban Five and the U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange

For more information call 313-575 4933 or 510-219-0092
For information about the Labor Conference email: laborexchange@aol.com

Tijuana International Labor Conference!

2009-10-21T18:45:00.002-04:00

Agenda - Spanish and English

2009-10-21T18:34:00.001-04:00

English and Spanish for Dec. 4 Free the Five

2009-10-20T21:27:00.004-04:00

Register Now! Pay online!

2009-10-02T19:36:00.007-04:00

It's less than two months until the SEVENTH Cuba/Venezuela/North America/Latin America Labor Conference - register and pay now online!

Want to Register and pay online with charge card? Here's how at http://laborexchange.blogspot.com/

1) Click on DONATE button (upper right at laborexchange.blogspot.com), follow instructions
2) Conference Registration is $80
3) Enter the dollar amount - $80 (or more, if you can afford an additional donation to help with costs.) You and the Labor Exchange will both receive an email receipt that will be used at the conference to confirm your payment.
4) Send the info on the form below to mailto:laborexchange@action-mail.org

THEN - Make your hotel registration at Hotel Palacio Azteca, request the Cuba Labor Conference rate that includes breakfast and Saturday dinner (Send your hotel confirmation number to mailto:laborexchange@action-mail.org) Hotel details are farther down in this post. (If you have any problems with reserving a hotel room, please let us know - call: 313 575 4933.)

Conference Registration/ Datos para su inscripción a la Conferencia:

Name/Nombre:_____________________________________

Address/Direccion:___________________________________

City,State, Zip/Ciudad, Estado, Zona postal:__________________

Phone/Telefono:_____________Fax:_____________________

Email/Correo Electronico:______________________________

Union/OrganizationSindicato:____________________________

[ ] Enclosed is my registration fee of $ 80 U.S. dollars (includes dinner and special Free the Cuban Five program with family members from Cuba)

[ ] I would like to give a donation of $ ________ for a low-income participant.

[ ] Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 80 dolares US y quisiera aportar la cantidad de $_______para aquellos participantes de bajo ingreso.

Make checks payable to: Labor Exchange
Haga los chekes pagables a: Labor Exchange

US/Cuba Labor Exchange ● P.O. BOX 39188 ● Redford MI 48239 ● Phone/Fax: (313) 575 4933 ● Email: laborexchange@aol.com

Reservations can be made at: Reservaciones de Hotel:

Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuahutemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila
22400 Tijuana, Mexico

*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660
Single/Sencilla Room $81 U.S. Dollars
Double/Doble Room $116 U.S. Dollars
(This will included two breakfasts and one dinner)
(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena)
Saturday: Coffee and sweets all day * Sabado: Cafe y bocadillos todo el dia

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descueanto al:
Cuba Labor Conference to get the special price.
Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservación lo antes possible.
*If you have a problem please call 313 575 4933 or laborexchange@aol.com

Directions: San Diego Airport to Tijuana

2009-10-02T19:31:00.002-04:00

How to Get from the San Diego International Airport to Tijuana:

Welcome to the San Diego International Airport. Just outside the airport terminal you will find signs where the MTS #992 bus will stop and pick you up and take you downtown. These buses have luggage racks for your convenience. They run every 15 minutes from 5 a.m. to midnight. The cost is $2.25 or $1.10 for seniors 60 and over. You must have exact change.

Alternatively, when you exit the trolley at the San Ysidro station you can take a Mexicoach shuttle bus, which you should be able to locate nearby, to the Tijuana Tourist Terminal in downtown Tijuana (between 6^th and 7^th on Avenida Revolución). The cost for this bus is $5.00. They depart every 30 minutes. The Hotel Palacio Azteca is still a good distance from this terminal (about a 25-minute walk) so you’ll probably want to take a taxi. Again, look for the red and white or orange and white “colectivo” or “libre” taxis.

OH YES ... the hotel is

the Palacio Azteca.

Address: Blvd. Cauhutemoc Sur #213

Here is a map...the Palacio Azteca is #5

Posted by Labor Exchange at 2:29 AM

Tijuana International Labor Conference!

2009-10-02T19:27:00.005-04:00

For the SIXTH YEAR on Dec. 4, 5 and 6, labor, immigrant rights organizers, students and young workers are coming together, uniting workers across borders to struggle in our own name and our own interest - be there!

and Special Dinner Reception to Free the Five Cuban Heroes - Friday, Dec. 4

Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/NorthAmerica Labor Conference - VI

Conferencia Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/Norte America - VI
December, 4, 5 and 6, Diciembre 4,5 y 6, 2009

¡La lucha obrera no tiene fronteras! The workers’ struggle has no borders!

Uniting America's Working Class and Increasing its Influence

U.S.-Cuba – Latin America- International Relations •
FTAA/NAFTA: the ALBA Alternative • Crises-Integration and Solidarity
Immigration between US/Latin America– Inmigración entre Estados y Latinoamérica •

Free the Cuban Five from U.S. prisons – Family visits now!

Conference Registration - $55 (register and pay online)

Cuban leaders of the Confederation of Cuban Worker s (CTC) will visit Tijuana, Mexico, a city 15 minutes from the San Diego, U.S./Mexico border.
This conference will give people from North America (the United States, Canada and Mexico) the opportunity to hear first hand from Latinamerican and Caribbean workers. Also, you will hear from Union leaders of: Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Haiti, Philippines, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador and the U.S. discussing the social and labor movements in the Americas.

Lideres sindicales Cubanos de la Central de Trabajadores de Cuba (CTC),
visitaran Tijuana, Mexico, una ciudad a 15 minutos de San Diego, CA. USA. de la
frontera Mexico/EE.UU.

Esta conferencia le brindará la oportunidad a los trabajadores de Norte America de obtener informacion de primera mano sobre la situación de los trabajadores en Latinoamerica y el Caribea. Tambien estaran presentes lideres sindicalistas de: Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Haiti, Filipinas, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador y los EE.UU.

Invited Panelists/Invitados (partial):

CUBA: Ernesto Freire Cazanas, Head Officer, Foreign Relations of C.T.C.; Carmen Godinez, CTC; Anibal Melo, WFTU America Region;

VENEZUELA: Representantes de Venezuela;
ECUADOR: Confederacion de Trabajadores del Ecuador;
BOLIVIA: Representante de C.O.B.;
NICARAGUA: Frente Nacional de Trabajadores, FNT
COLOMBIA: Joaquin Romero Presidente FUNTRAENERGETICA; Edgar Paez, SINALTRAINAL;
HONDURAS: Juan Barahona, Presidente de la Federacion Unitaria de Trabajadores de Honduras
HAITI: Dukens Raphael Secretario General Confederation des Travailleurs du Sector Public et Prive
PUERTO RICO: Angel Figueroa Jaramillo Presidente de la UTIER
PANAMA: Genaro López; Secretario General SUNTRACS
NICARAGUA: Freddy Franco Secretario General FEPDES

PHILI PPINES: Elmer LaBog, Chairperson, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU);

BRAZIL: Joao Batista Lemos, Secretario Adjunto de Relaciones Internacionales
MEXICO: Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas (SME); Oliverio Esquivel: FSM- Mexi co
ESTADOS UNIDOS: Cristina Vasquez, Workers United; Baldemar Velazquez, Presidente of FLOC (Farm Labor Organizing Committee)

AGENDA

Friday, December 4, 2009 - 6 pm -11 pm

Dinner reception to welcome family of the Cuban Five. Current developments in the international movement to Free the Five Cuban Heroes unjustly held in U.S. prisons for twelve years.

Saturday December 5, 2009 - 9 am - 1 pm

Impact of the crisis on the workers. Positions of the Latin American and Caribbean labor movements addressing the crisis. Alternatives.

Impacto de la crisis en los trabajadores. Posiciones del movimiento sindical latinoamericano y caribeno frente a la crisis. Alternativas

International union guests will discuss the relation s between the United States, Cuba, Venezuela, Mexico,and the rest of Latin America, including the U.S. blockade against
Cuba, the threats to the Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela, Bolivia and the
imposition of Neoliberal policies on Mexico.

Saturday, December 5, 2009 - 3 pm - 7 pm

ALBA as a growing alternative to the FTAA. Here we will debate the defeat of the FTAA and the continued pursuit o f the U.S. transnationals to implement free trade agreements -
one by one - in Latin America. Hear and discuss how nine member countries of ALBA
are responding in collective solidarity to the urgent problems of energy and food crises, education, communication, sports, and the necessities of life for those marginalized by colonialism and imperialist globalization. Find out about the newest development, how Latin America labor federations are organizing themselves for Workers Unite for a New America.

Sunday, December 7, 2008 - 9 am -3 pm

Latin American immigration to the U.S. Here we will discuss the disastrous effects of the FTAA imposed by the U.S. government and U.S. transnationals on Latin America that destroys the Latin American economy and forces millions of workers to emigrate to the U.S. where they become modern day slaves, have their human rights violated and are humiliated.

SPONSORS (partial):

U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange;
Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas (SME);
Federacion Sindical Mundial;
International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five;
National Network on Cuba (NNOC);
Venezuela Solidarity Network (VSN);
International Action Center (IAC);
Cuba Solidarity New York (CSNY);
Southwest Workers Union, San Antonio, Texas;
C.O.M.P.A., Converjencia de losMovimientos de los Pueblos de Las Americas.

Conference Registration/ Datos para su inscripción a la Conferencia:

Name/Nombre:____________________________________________

Address/Direccion:_________________________________________

City,State, Zip/Ciudad, Estado, Zona postal:_____________________

Phone/Telefono:_______________________Fax:_________________

Email/Correo Electronico:____________________________________

Union/Organization /Sindicato:________________________________

[ ] Enclosed is my registrati on fee of $ 55 U.S.dollars ([ ] additional donation $30 requested special Free the Five dinner, Friday - $20 for residents of Mexico)

[ ]I would like to give a donation of $________ for a low-income participant.

[ ] Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 55 dolares US y quisiera aportar la cantidad de $_______para aquellos participantes de bajo ingreso.
([ ] donación adicional - 30 dolares-– una cena especial – viernes – por Los Cincos - 20 dolares para residentes de Mexico)

Make checks payable to: Labor Exchange

Haga los chekes pagables a: Labor Exchange

US/Cuba Labor Exchange ● P.O. BOX 39188 ● Redford MI 48239 ●

Phone/Fax: (313) 575 4933 ● Email: laborexchange at aol.com

Reservations can be made at: Reservaciones de Hotel:
Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila 22400
Tijuana, Mexico

*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660

Single/Sencilla Room $80 U.S.Dollars per night
Double/Doble Room $114 U.S. Dollars per night
*(This will included two breakfasts and one dinner per person)
(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena por persona)

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descuento al:
Cuba Labor Conference to get the discounted price.

Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservacion lo antes possible.

*If you have a problem please call 313 575 4933 or email: laborexchange@aol.com

Labor Exchange donates van to CTC - can you help?

2009-07-05T10:09:00.004-04:00

On July 10 a beautiful passenger van decorated by renown artist Tyree Guyton will join the Pastors for Peace caravan to Cuba. The theme of the art work on the van is Freedom for the Cuban Five - Time to Go home. Join us at the Dinner and Dance on July 10 or help fund the van ... contribute through the donate button on this page. The first "5" is painted by young Heidelberg Project artists who heard a presentation about the case of the Cuban Five.

Celebrate Cuba's 50th Anniversary - Reserve tickets here!

2009-06-20T20:01:00.005-04:00

To Reserve Your Tickets
to Celebrate the
Cuban Revolution's 50th Anniversary
click on DONATE!

Celebrate Cuba's 50th Anniversary - Reserve tickets here!

2009-06-13T14:02:00.002-04:00

Longshore Workers say Free the Cuban Five!

2009-01-16T10:57:00.003-05:00

DEFEND LONGSHORE WORKERS' RIGHTS!

2008-12-12T20:10:00.003-05:00

The V Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America Labor Conference held in Tijuana, Mexico Dec. 5-7, 2008 supports Jason Ruffin and Aaron Harrison against racist frame-up charges. It is our understanding that 12/15 will be a victory rally as the charges were dropped - but solidarity with the ILWU members and union are always in order.

Resolutions from the Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America Labor Conference 2008

2008-12-12T19:21:00.009-05:00

Six documents follow:
1) Original Final Declaration written originally in Spanish
2) Draft English translation of Final Declaration
3) Resolution to form an Attorney's Commission to investigate the detention of Carlos Pavon from the Miners Union in Mexico and repression of that union (in original Spanish - no English translation)
4) Resolution supporting International Workers Solidarity Month - May 2008 (original English - no Spanish translation)
5) Resolution to Defend Longshore Workers' Rights! (original English - no Spanish translation - see leaflet posted separately)
6) Resolution to Support Sit-Down Strikers at Republic Window and Doors in Chicago (This struggle was settled to the workers satisfaction)(original English - no Spanish translation)

============================================================================

V CONFERENCIA LABORAL

DECLARACIÓN DE TIJUANA

Más de cien participantes de organizaciones sindicales y sociales de Estados Unidos de Norteamérica, de Mexico, de Cuba, de Haití, de Bolivia, de Ecuador, de Colombia, y de Filipinas, participantes en la V Conferencia de intercambio laboral celebrada en Tijuana, los días 5, 6 y 7 de diciembre DEL 2008, declaran que:

El orden económico y social vigente en casi todo el mundo, ha sufrido una debacle de proporciones inusitadas demostrando que no sólo se trata de una crisis del sector financiero, sino que abarca todas las esferas de la producción, del consumo, de la inversión y del comercio, y que está empujando a una depresión económica mundial.

Las consecuencias sociales derivadas de las perniciosas políticas neoliberales, agravadas con la crisis financiera, energética y alimentaria internacional, tienen, como causa, la imposición del pensamiento único neoliberal generador de la exclusión, marginación, violencia y de efectos irreversibles ocasionados al planeta.

La quiebra del sistema financiero internacional evidencia el carácter especulador y expoliador del capitalismo y la inmoralidad de los grandes capitales.

Mientras los gobiernos poderosos hoy corren para salvar a los causantes de la debacle, son las victimas: los/as trabajadores/as y los pueblos, quienes sufren sus consecuencias.

Esta crisis parece anunciar el final de una era y un punto de inflexión en la historia de la humanidad, que hará que las cosas ya no vuelvan a ser como eran. Somos testigos del principio del fin del modelo neoliberal y de su ideología.

El mundo está ante un enorme desafío y una gran oportunidad que no se puede dejar pasar sin discutir las bases mismas del orden social vigente y proponer alternativas.

Hay que comenzar por plantearnos la caducidad del injusto modelo que, sin asidero ético, provoca una sociedad segmentada, con individuos que tienen los medios de producción y los que sólo disponen de su capacidad de trabajo.

Otro mundo no sólo es posible, sino absolutamente necesario y en ese mundo los/as trabajadores/as y sus derechos deben tener preferencia.

Tiene que haber cambios estructurales fundamentales para transformar al sistema mundial económico y financiero para que otras crisis como la que hoy nos afecta, no ocurran nunca más.

Tiene que haber estructuras y políticas económicas globales que prioricen las necesidades de los pueblos, que respeten y promuevan los derechos humanos y la justicia social y ambiental; que amparen el empleo decoroso, medios de vida sustentables, servicios esenciales como el cuidado de la salud, la educación, vivienda, servicios de agua y energía limpia.

Este sistema puede y debe ser cambiado. El problema no es la crisis del capitalismo, no, sino el capitalismo mismo.

Ante estas realidades los sindicatos tenemos deberes.

Ø Los grandes conglomerados financieros y las transnacionales ejecutan y se benefician de crímenes de lesa humanidad para la realización de sus negocios. En el 2008 el Tribunal Permanente de los Pueblos, juzgó y condenó por estos hechos a decenas de transnacionales, al gobierno de Colombia y a los gobiernos de los países de las casas matrices. La campaña global que se adelanta contra Coca Cola evidencia esta difícil realidad.

Llamamos a fortalecer las iniciativas de resistencia y las campañas globales que contra diferentes transnacionales se adelantan (Coca Cola, Nestlé, Occidental Petroleum, Repsol, BP, entre otras.)

Ø Vivimos en un mundo en el que los “pocos ricos” desprecian, discriminan, y esclavizan a los “muchos pobres”.

Esto es posible por la alianza en la que se funda su unidad como clase social defendiendo así su sistema cuya fuerza utilizan para enfrentar, atacar, manipular, dividir, desviar y debilitar a los/as trabajadores/as y a su organización colectiva: los sindicatos.

La iniciativa unitaria que constituye este encuentro, en el que se ha logrado abordar algunos de los problemas que afectan a los/as trabajadores/as, se plantea promover acciones que conduzcan a la recuperación de la capacidad de lucha de los/as trabajadores/as y del dinamismo y representatividad en la actuación sindical defendiendo la independencia de clase y la autonomía sindical como son: la defensa de los derechos laborales y sociales; la lucha por la integración solidaria y soberana entre los pueblos.

Ø Expresamos nuestra solidaridad activa y militante con la revolución Cubana, ejemplo de resistencia y lucha consecuente contra el imperialismo y demandamos al nuevo gobierno de EE.UU., el levantamiento del bloqueo económico y el cese inmediato de todo tipo de agresiones que impidan su estabilidad y desarrollo.

Reclamamos la liberación de los 5 Héroes Cubanos presos injustamente por luchar contra el terrorismo anticubano y exigimos sean otorgadas las visas a sus familiares y particularmente a Adriana Pérez y Olga Salanueva esposas de Gerardo y René cruelmente impedidas de encontrarse con ellos.

Ø Igualmente expresamos nuestro apoyo a los procesos de transformación socio-políticos que se vienen dando en la región latinoamericana y en particular a los gobiernos de los países que impulsan el ALBA. Proclamamos nuestra solidaridad con los gobiernos democráticos de Nicaragua, Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Haitì y Paraguay.

Ø En la actualidad la tendencia que caracteriza a la región latinoamericana no es la entrega a los poderosos, sino la construccion de otra sociedad en la que el pueblo trabajador sea el beneficiario de las riquezas que durante siglos les han sido expoliadas. Así está siendo impuesta la voluntad popular. El movimiento sindical no puede estar al margen de esta tendencia.

El futuro es del sindicalismo clasista comprometido con las transformaciones sociales que buscan ese otro mundo posible al que aspiran los pueblos.

Los participantes fueron convocados a participar en la II Versión del encuentro sindical “Nuestra América” a celebrarse en Octubre del 2009 en Brasil como parte de los esfuerzos para forjar la unidad en la acción de la que tan requerido estamos.

Ø Exigimos:

ü Erradicar las inhumanas prácticas que amparadas por el gobierno, hacen de Colombia el país mas peligroso para defender derechos sindicales y sociales.

ü Suprimir las leyes laborales que en Filipinas protegen la persecución de los líderes sindicales que defienden el respeto a los derechos de los/as trabajadores/as.

ü La salida de las tropas que en nombre de Naciones Unidas ocupan el territorio haitiano cuyo pueblo, con justeza reclama el respeto a su soberanía y autodeterminación.

ü La liberación de Mumia Abu-Jamal, Leonard Peltier y otros prisioneros políticos en los Estados Unidos de América.

ü El respeto por el gobierno mexicano a los justos reclamos de los mineros en Cananaza, estado de Sonora, Guerrero, San Martín y en Zacatecas. Igualmente la solución de las demandas de los maestros.

Los/as participantes reconocieron que esta V Conferencia les abrió espacios para el intercambio y también les proporcionó razones para fortalecerse y animarse, aun en mayor medida, para continuar comprometidos/as en la lucha por un mundo mejor que es posible, pero necesario conquistar, por lo que convocan a celebrar la VI Conferencia de Intercambio Laboral en el mes de Diciembre del 2009.

==================================================================================================

Draft English translation

V LABOR CONFERENCE

STATEMENT FROM TIJUANA

Over one hundred participants from trade union and social organizations in the United States of America, from Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia and the Philippines, participating in the Labor Exchange’s V Conference held in Tijuana, the on 5, 6 and Dec. 7 of 2008, s declare that:

The present economic and social force almost everywhere in the world, has suffered a debacle of unusual proportions demonstrating that it not only has been a crisis in the financial sector, but covers all areas of production, consumption, investment and trade, and is pushing a worldwide economic depression.

The social consequences arising from the harmful neoliberal policies, aggravated by the financial crisis, international food and energy crises, are caused by the imposition of neoliberal thinking that generates exclusion, marginalization, violence and has caused irreversible effects on the planet.

The failure of the international financial system is evidence of the speculative and exploitive nature of capitalism and the immorality of the great capitalists.

Meanwhile, powerful governments dispatched help to save those who caused the debacle, while the victims: the workers and the people, suffer its consequences.

This crisis seems to herald the end of an era and a turning point in human history, which will cause life to never again be like they were. We are witnessing the beginning of the end of the neoliberal model and its ideology.

The world faces a huge challenge and a great opportunity that can not allow to pass by without questioning the very foundations of present social order and propose alternatives.

We must begin by raising the expiration of the unjust model without bail ethical that causes a society divided between individuals who own the means of production and those who have only their ability to work.

Another world is not only possible but absolutely necessary. In that world the workers and their rights must take precedence.

There must be fundamental structural changes to transform the global economic and financial system so another crises like the one that affects us today, can never occur again.

There must be global economic structures and policies that prioritize the needs of the people, that respect and promote human rights and social justice and the environment; that protect the decent and full employment, sustainable livelihoods, essential services like health care, education, housing, water services and clean energy. This system can and must be changed. The problem is not the crisis of capitalism, no, but capitalism itself.

Faced with these realities unions have these duties.

The large conglomerates and transnational conduct their businesses to profit from crimes against humanity. In 2008 the Permanent Peoples' Tribunal, tried and convicted dozens of these transnations, the Colombian government and the governments of the parent countries by these facts . The global campaign being conducted against Coca Cola is evidence this difficult reality.

We call to strengthen the initiatives and campaigns of resistance against different global transnationals like Coca Cola, Nestle, Occidental Petroleum, Repsol, BP, among others.

We live in a world in which the "few rich" despise, discriminate, and enslave the "vast numbers of poor people."

This is made possible by the alliance in which its unity is based on a social class that defends its system using its force to confront, attack, manipulate, divide, distract and weaken the workers and their collective organization: the unions.

The single initiative from this conference, which has managed to address some of the problems that affect the workers, is to promote actions leading to the recovery of the ability to the workers to fight with dynamism and representation in the trade union action to defend the independence of the working class and trade union independence, such as: the defense of labor and social rights, the fight for integration and solidarity between sovereign peoples.

We express our active and militant solidarity with the Cuban revolution, an example of resistance and struggle against imperialism, and consequently demand that the new U.S. government lift the economic blockade and immediately cease all types of aggression that would impede Cuba’s stability and development.

We demand the release of the 5 Cuban Heroes unjustly imprisoned for fighting anti-Cuban terrorism and demand that visas be granted to their family members and particularly to Olga Salanueva and Adriana Perez wives of Gerardo and René who are cruelly prevented from visiting them.

We also express our support for the social and political transformation processes that have been occurring in the Latin American region and in particular the governments of countries that drive ALBA. We declare our solidarity with the democratic governments of Nicaragua, Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Haiti and Paraguay.

At present the trend that characterizes the Latin American region is not surrendering to the powerful, but the construction of another society where the working people are the beneficiary of the wealth that for centuries has been stolen against the people's will. The union movement can not be outside this trend.

The future is in class conscious trade unionism together with social transformations that are looking for the “other world that is possible” to which the people aspire.

Participants are invited to participate in the Second Edition of the labor meeting "Our America" to be held in October 2009 in Brazil as part of efforts to forge unity in action which is so necessary.

We demand:

Eliminating the inhumane practices, supported by the government, that make Colombia the most dangerous country in which to defend union rights and social issues.
Abolish the Philippine labor laws that protect the persecution of union leaders who advocate respect for the rights of workers.
The withdrawal of UN troops occupying Haitian territory whose people justly demand respect for their sovereignty and self-determination.
The release of Mumia Abu-Jamal, Leonard Peltier and other political prisoners in the United States of America.
That the Mexican government respects the just demands of the miners in Cananea in the state of Sonora, Guerrero, San Martin and in Zacatecas. Equally, we demand a resolution to the demands of the teachers.

The participants acknowledged that this fifth conference opened spaces for exchange and also gave them reason to be strengthened and encouraged, even more committed to continue in the struggle for a better world that is possible, but must be won, and so decided to convene the Sixth Conference of the Labor Exchange in December 2009.

====================================================================================

Tijuana, Mexico

A La Clase Trabajadora

A Las Organizaciones Campasinas, sociales y politicas

A La opinion publica

Presentes:

Los asistentes al evento internacional de Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America Labor Conference – Tijuana, BC, Mexico

No pronunciamos en solidaridad con las siguientes organizationes y referents sindicales: frente syndical mexicano, confederacion de jubilados, pensionados y adultos mayors de la republica Mexicana A.C., Coordinadora nacional de trabajadores de la educacion confederacion nacional campesina, dialogo nacional, asociacion nacional de abogados democraticos movimiento de liberacion nacional, organizacion nacional del poder popular, frente syndical mexicano, sindicato nacional de trabajadores mineros, metalurgicos, siderurgicos y similares de la republica Mexicana, union nacional de trabajadores.

Para denunciar la detencion el 4 de diciembre del companero Carlos Pavon Campos, secretario de asuntos politicos de Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores Mineros, Metalurgicos y Similares de la Republica Mexicana y Juan Linares Montufar.

Apoyamos al Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas para comenzar ya una campana internacional de solidaridad, para que organizaciones de todo mundo, conozcan la politica laboral del gobierno mexicano, en contra de la clase trabajadora, y expresamos nuestro apoyo a los camaradas mineros.

Estamos de acuerdo en la decision de las organizaciones sindicales en Mexico para enviar una Comision de Abogados a la ciudad de Monclava, Coahuila, para concer de primera mano la actual situacion juridical de nuestros companeros detenidos e iniciar los tramites legales, para su ionmediata liberacion

¡Por la libertad y los derechos de la clase trabajadora!

Firma de los asistentes a la conferencia:

==================================================================================

Resolution passed unanimously in Tijuana Mexico on Sunday December 7, 2008

Extending Mayday 2009 to the entire month of May, thus making May 2009 International Workers Solidarity Month.

We, the participants of Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America 5th Annual Labor Conference in the city of Tijuana, including the representation of labor delegates from Mexico, the Philippines, Ecuador, the U.S., Bolivia, Haiti, and Colombia;

Encourage all progressive, working class and revolutionary forces to extend observation of May Day, international workers day, in 2009, to the entire month of May 2009, making it international workers solidarity month.

We understanding that, now in the midst of the severest global capitalist economic crises since the depression of the 1930s, the bankers and bosses and imperialist will try to solve this crisis on the backs of the global working class.

Therefore, tactics that can maximize working class solidarity across borders are know more than ever, a fundamental necessity.

We must anticipate that the enemies of the working class will intensify their methods aimed at dividing the working class, so as to undermine its unity in the struggle. We must prepare for a rise in racism and national oppression. We know that one of their main

weapons of division will be to intensify the campaign to demonize, and persecute immigrant workers.

Expanding International Workers Day to Workers Solidarity Month is one tactic that can be utilized towards the end of strengthening international class solidarity.

We realize that this is merely an idea, and that its effectiveness will be measured by the degree to which the mass movements embrace the idea, utilize and shape it.

However, if it is embraced, making the month of May 2009, International Workers Solidarity Month has the potential of creating greater impetus and space to lift up and connect more strongly to priorities of the working class such struggles as Freedom for Cuban 5, and solidarity with the workers movements in Latin American and the Caribbean, and all over the world, including the anti-imperialist struggles form the Philippines, to Iraq, Palestine, and Africa.

==============================================================================

It is our understanding that the charges against Brothers Jason Ruffin and Aaron Harrison have been dropped. The ILWU is continuing with a victory demonstration. (see leaflet posted separately for details and instructions on sending solidarity messages.)

===========================================================================================

Resolution of Tijuana Conference in Support of Workers occupation
in Chicago (unanimously adopted Dec. 7, 2008)

We, the participants of Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America
5th Annual Labor Conference in the city of Tijuana,
including the representation of leading labor delegates
from the Philippines, Ecuador, the U.S., Bolivia, Haiti
and Colombia:

Extend our solidarity with the 200 courageous workers who
are now in the third day of their occupation of the
Republic Window and Door plant in the city of Chicago
in the U.S. The workers, which include most of the 250
workers employed at the plant, began their occupation
on Friday, December 5 - the day that the plant was
closed - and all of the workers were fired.

The occupation is a direct consequence of the process
that has intensified with the worsening of the global
financial crises in recent months. The Chicago plant is
closing because Bank of America, perhaps the biggest
bank in the world, and a bank that has received in
recent months hundreds of billions of dollars in bail
out money from the U.S. government, refused to extend
a line of credit to the plant’s owners.

The workers, who are primarily Latino immigrants and
members of the United Electrical Workers Union local
1110, were not given the legally mandated, 60-day
Federal prior notification or 75-day Illinois required
notice of the plant’s closing. And, the plant management
and owners did not show up to a meeting with the workers
that had been scheduled for Friday. Now the workers have
vowed to stay in the plant until the owners agree to pay
them all 60/75 days severance pay and holiday pay.

Already, word of the occupation has spread across the 
U.S. and the world and support for it is growing.

We support the occupation, we support the workers
demands, and we are inspired by the militant example
of resistance that the workers in Chicago are setting.

Most importantly, we call on the workers of the U.S.,
including the organized labor movement, to give the
workers´ occupation in Chicago its full political and
material solidarity and support. These workers are not
only fighting for themselves, they are fighting for the
rights of all workers everywhere. How can we do any
less than to stand with them until victory.

Demonstrate at Bank of America near you!

Chicago:
Sun., Dec. 7, 10:30 AM Jessie Jackson and Rainbow PUSH deliver turkeys to workers
occupying Republic Windows and Doors factory, 1333 N Hickory St. (near corner of
Halsted and Division)
Mon., Dec. 8, 12 noon - Press Conference before UE workers meet with Bank of America
and company executives. Supports welcome, bring food and monetary donations.
Tues., Dec. 9, 12 noon - Solidarity action at Bank of America, 231 S. LaSalle,
Chicago, IL

CHICAGO RALLY: Wed., Dec 10, Bank of America Headquarters  Noon, 231 S. La Salle
St (downtown)(see www.ueunion.org)
Atlanta, GA:
Thurs., Dec. 11, 12 Noon - Bank of America - contact atlantaiac@aol.com for details.
Baltimore, MD:
Wed., Dec. 10, Emergency Demonstration at Bank of America, Downtown Corner of
Redwood and Light Street. Call 410-467-6132 for details.
Charlotte, NC:
Mon., Dec 8, 12 Noon - Picket at Bank of American national Headquarters to support
Republic workers. Corner of Trade St and Tryon in downtown Charlotte. Organized by
UE local 150. call Dante Strobino at 919-539-2051 for more info
Detroit, MI:
Wed., Dec 10 12:00 noon - PROTEST RALLY, WEDS. DEC. 10,12:00 NOON - BANK OF AMERICA, 
Guardian Building, Congress at Griswold, downtown Detroit. For more information
contact: Moratorium NOW! Coalition 313-887-4344
Los Angeles, CA:
Wed., Dec. 10 – 4:30 pm – Bank of America location 6th and Hill St. –
call: 323 899 2003
NYC, NY:
Wed., Dec. 10, 12 Noon, Bank of America, 261 Broadway www.bailoutpeople.org
San Francisco, CA: Bail out Workers, Not Banks! Stop Plant Closings!Protest Bank of
America, Tues., Dec. 9, 5pm Powell and Market

Coming from U.S.? Bring documents to return!

2008-12-02T02:56:00.004-05:00

There won't be any questions entering Mexico - but there will be when you re-enter the U.S. Make your trip smoother by remembering to bring documents.

Here is what the U.S. says they want to see when you re-enter the U.S.

For U.S./Canadian citizens, there are two options: a one document or an alternative, two document requirement. (For participants who are citizens of other countries re-entering the U.S., see the second reprint below.)

U.S. entry documents required from citizens of Mexico or any other countries other than Canada and the U.S.

DIRECTIONS: San Diego Airport to Conference: Public Transport

2008-12-02T02:29:00.004-05:00

How to Get from the San Diego International Airport to Tijuana:

Welcome to the San Diego International Airport. Just outside the airport terminal you will find signs where the MTS #992 bus will stop and pick you up and take you downtown. These buses have luggage racks for your convenience. They run every 15 minutes from 5 a.m. to midnight. The cost is $2.25 or $1.10 for seniors 60 and over. You must have exact change.

Alternatively, when you exit the trolley at the San Ysidro station you can take a Mexicoach shuttle bus, which you should be able to locate nearby, to the Tijuana Tourist Terminal in downtown Tijuana (between 6^th and 7^th on Avenida Revolución). The cost for this bus is $5.00. They depart every 30 minutes. The Hotel Palacio Azteca is still a good distance from this terminal (about a 25-minute walk) so you’ll probably want to take a taxi. Again, look for the red and white or orange and white “colectivo” or “libre” taxis.

OH YES ... the hotel is

the Palacio Azteca.

Address: Blvd. Cauhutemoc Sur #213

Here is a map...the Palacio Aztec is #5

Dec. 5 - 7 Tijuana! Int'l. Labor Leaders Analyze Economic Crisis

2008-12-02T01:58:00.006-05:00

For the FIFTH YEAR on this weekend in December, labor, immigrant rights organizers, students and young workers are coming together, uniting workers across borders to struggle in our own name and our own interest - be there!

Now, at the beginning of a global economic crisis unprecedented in our lifetimes, discuss with representatives of the Cuban Confederation of Workers; Alfredo Spooner, V.P., Federation of Railway Workers and Carlos Lopez, Pres. of the Federation of University Workers of Venezuela; Mario Lopez, Gen'l.-Sec. Bolivian Workers Central Union ; Elmer Labog, Chairperson, Kilusang Mayo - Philippines; Paul Loulou Chery, Gen'l. Sec, Confederation of Haitian Workers; Elvira Arellano, Immigrant Rights Hero; Clarence Thomas, Million Workers March Movement, ILWU on May 1 port strike against the war; Cristina Vazquez, Western States Regional Director, UNITE-HERE; Rosie Martinez, Chairperson, SEIU Latino Caucus, SEIU 721 E. Bd. (see more below - from Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador!)

and Special Dinner Reception with Magali Llort Ruiz, mother of Fernando González one of the FIVE CUBAN HEROES unjustly imprisoned in the U.S. and attorney Leonard Weinglass on Friday, Dec. 5. _____________________________________________________________________________

Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America 2008
Labor Conference V - Dec. 5, 6 & 7
Tijuana, Mexico

Photos from last year's conference (2007)
Included in picture above is (standing) Irma Sehwerert, mother of Rene González of Cuban 5 with young workers and students
Included in picture below is (from left) Immigration Activist Elvira Arellano
and Panel Chairperson, Ignacio Meneses

Only a few minutes from San Diego,
California, you can exchange ideas and
experiences with leaders from the worker
struggle in Latin America!

Friday, December 5:
Special Dinner Reception -
Welcome to the Families of the Cuban 5, Magali Llort, mother of Fernando González and Attorney Leonard Weinglass

Saturday, December 6:
U.S.-Cuba/Venezuela/ International Relations
NAFTA/FTAA: ALBA Alternative Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Bolivia

Sunday, December 7:
Immigration between U.S. & Latin America

Invited panelists (partial list):

CUBA:Ernesto Freire Cazanas, Head Officer, Foreign Relations, CTC; Carmen Godines, Dir., Americas, Dept. of Foreign Relations, CTC; Ramon Cardona, Gen.-Sec. WFTU America Region,

VENEZUELA: Alfredo Spooner, Vice-Pres., Federación Ferroviaria, CST; Carlos Lopez, Pres. Federación de Trabajadores Universitarios;

ECUADOR: Edgar Luis Sarango Correa, Vice-Pres., Confederacion de Trabajadores;

BOLIVIA: Mario López Choque, Sec.-Gen’l. de la COB;

NICARAGUA: Representante;

COLOMBIA: Edgar Paez, SINALTRAINAL;

HAITI: Paul Loulou Chery, Sec.-Gen’l., Confederation of Haitian Workers (CTH)

PHILIPPINES: Elmer Labog, Chairperson, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU);

MEXICO: Sindicato Mexicano Electricistas (SME);

MEXICO/U.S.: Elvira Arellano and Emma Lozano, La Familia Latina Unida, Chicago;

U.S.: Cristina Vasquez, UNITE-HERE, Clarence Thomas, ILWU
Rosie Martinez, Latino Caucus SEIU Local 721

SPONSORS (partial):
U.S./Cuba Labor Exchange; International Committee for Freedom of the Cuban Five; Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas (SME); World Organization for the Right of the People to Healthcare, SEIU 1199 NY; National Network on Cuba (NNOC); Venezuela Solidarity Network (VSN); International Action Center (IAC); Cuba Solidarity New York (CSNY); Southwest Workers Union, San Antonio, Texas; C.O.M.P.A., Converjencia de los Movimientos de los Pueblos de Las Americas,

To register online or get information on hotel reservations please go to:
laborexchange.blogspot.com

FOR CARPOOLING INFORMATION FROM LOS ANGELES call: 310 677-6407.

2008-11-11T20:00:00.002-05:00

"My first union job was in Chicago."

This is not an unusual statement at a labor conference. But when it comes from one of the mothers of the Cuban Five it is an example of the rich history that exists between the people of the U.S. and Cuba.

The statement was made by Irma Sehwerert last year at the International Labor Conference in Tijuana, where she came from Cuba to represent the families of the Cuban Five. Her son, René González, was born in Chicago where Irma worked in the electrical industry.

On Sept. 12, 2008 René began his eleventh year of unjust imprisonment in Marianna, Florida.

And many in the immigrant rights struggle would certainly agree that Elvira Arellano who two years ago bravely defied deportation orders by taking sanctuary in a Chicago church is an example of "courage and dignity".. So it was moving beyond words to see Cuban union leader Carmen Godinez embrace Elvira at the 2007 Labor Conference in Tijuana, Mexico. Godinez was so overwhelmed by Elvira’s courage that she was moved to embrace her at the podium during the conference.

These two incidents at the 2007 conference are just a glimpse of the inspiring and even revolutionary passion you will experience at the Tijuana labor conference.

The 2008 Cuba/Venezuela/Latin America/North America Labor Conference is fast approaching - along with an economic crisis that crumbles illusions in the profit-first capitalist system and a new administration coming to Washington, D.C. setting the sights of millions of workers on a better life. There is a lot to learn and much to discuss and share.

How is ALBA (the anti-Free Trade Agreement!) affecting the lives of workers in Latin America? What is the state of U.S./Cuba and international relations? What effect is the downward economic spiral having on immigrants and the fight for immigrant rights and dignity? What about the struggles in the U.S. for the human right to housing, education, work and health care - and to live free of war? And the political prisoners held inside the U.S. like the Cuban Five and Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Friday, Dec. 5 is a night of solidarity with the Cuban Five - featuring Magali Llort Ruiz, mother of Fernando Gonzalez and a legal update by attorney Leonard Weinglass, his schedule permitting. Invited international guests include representatives from: Cuba, Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Philippines, Haiti and Mexico.

Be there! Make travel and hotel arrangements now!
Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America Labor Conference - V Conferencia Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/Norte America
December, 5, 6 and 7, Diciembre 5,6 y 7 2008
Tijuana, Mexico

La lucha obrera no tiene fronteras! The workers’ struggle has no borders!

Special Friday reception/dinner. Meet Family members of the Cuban Five!

Online registration and payment available at laborexchange.blogspot.com

Conference participants are strongly encouraged to stay at the Conference Hotel to maximize interaction with international guests - a special rate that includes the breakfast buffet and Saturday dinner has been negotiated - ask for CUBA LABOR CONFERENCE.

Hotel Reservations at: Reservaciones de Hotel:
Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila
22400 Tijuana, Mexico

*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660
Single/Sencilla Room $98 U.S. Dollars • Double/Doble Room $141 U.S.
Dollars (This will included two breakfasts and one dinner)
(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena)

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descueanto al:
CUBA LABOR CONFERENCE to get the special price.
Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservación lo antes possible.
*If you have a problem please call 313 587 9285 or email laborexchange@aol.com

Note: For U.S. citizens - passport or photo ID AND birth certificate is now required to return to the U.S.

2008-10-29T20:55:00.000-04:00

And "Unite the Union" - now merged with the United Steelworkers in the U.S. - made a wonderful video explaining why workers must support the Cuban Five.

See it here:
www.unitetheunion.com/miami5

Be with Family members of the Cuban 5 - in Tijuana on Friday, Dec. 5!

Unions Demand Rights of Olga and Adriana!

2008-10-29T20:43:00.007-04:00

Register Now! Pay online!

2008-10-29T20:31:00.000-04:00

2008 Labor Tour helps build Tijuana Conference

2008-10-29T20:20:00.004-04:00

Help build participation in the V-Cuba/Venezuela/Latin America/North America Trade Union Conference in Tijuana - Dec. 5, 6, 7, 2008.

From Sept. 30 - Oct. 14, Latin American union leaders from Colombia and Nicaragua toured the U.S. talking with workers and activists about the advances made through ALBA - the Bolivarian Alternative to the imperialist free trade agreements; the Bank of the South; Petro-Caribe; the Yo si puedo literacy method arming people throughout Latin America with the weapon of knowledge; the operation milago correcting impaired vision that prevented people from gaining literacy; the struggle of the workers and Indigenous people in Colombia where nearly 50 union leaders have been assassinated this year alone; free education re-instituted in Nicaragua since the Sandinistas gained office; and much more. The Conference in Tijuana is the next step.

Register and Pay online!

2008-10-16T20:32:00.003-04:00

It's only seven weeks until the Fifth Cuba/Venezuela/North America/Latin America Labor Conference - register and pay now online!

Want to Register and pay online with charge card? Here's how at http://laborexchange.blogspot.com/

1) Click on DONATE button (upper right at laborexchange.blogspot.com), follow instructions
2) Conference Registration is $55 (an additional $25 donation is requested for the special Free the Five dinner)
3) Enter the dollar amount - $55 or $80 (or more, if you can afford an additional donation to help with costs.) You and the labor exchange will both receive an email receipt that will be used at the conference to confirm your payment.
4) Send the info on the form below to laborexchange@action-mail.org

THEN - Make your hotel registration at Hotel Palacio Azteca, request the Cuba Labor Conference rate that includes breakfast and Saturday dinner (Send your hotel confirmation number to laborexchange@action-mail.org and receive a FREE DVD compliments of Leftbooks.com - Choose One: Mission Against Terror; One Man's Story: Philip Agee, Cuba, and the CIA, or Posada Carriles: Terrorism made in USA.) (If you have any problems with reserving a hotel room, please let us know - call: 313 587 9285.)

Conference Registration/ Datos para su inscripción a la Conferencia:

Name/Nombre:___________________________________________________________________________________________

Address/Direccion:______________________________City,State, Zip/Ciudad, Estado, Zona postal:______________________

Phone/Telefono:_____________Fax:______________ Email/Correo Electronico:_____________________________________

Union/Organization/Sindicato:______________________________________________________________________________

[ ] Enclosed is my registration fee of $ 55 U.S. dollars ([ ] additional donation $25 requested - special Free the Five dinner, Friday)

[ ] I would like to give a donation of $ ________ for a low-income participant.

[ ] Envio mi registro y mi donacion de 55 dolares US y quisiera aportar la cantidad de $_______para aquellos participantes de bajo ingreso. ([ ] donación adicional - 25 dolares – una cena especial – viernes – por Los Cincos)

Make checks payable to: Labor Exchange
Haga los chekes pagables a: Labor Exchange

US/Cuba Labor Exchange ● P.O. BOX 39188 ● Redford MI 48239 ● Phone/Fax: (313) 587 9285
● Email: laborexchange@aol.com

Reservations can be made at: Reservaciones de Hotel:

Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila
22400 Tijuana, Mexico

*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660
Single/Sencilla Room $98 U.S. Dollars • Double/Doble Room $141 U.S. Dollars
(This will included two breakfasts and one dinner)
(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena)

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descueanto al:
Cuba Labor Conference to get the discounted price.
Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservación lo antes possible.
*If you have a problem please call 313 587 9285 or laborexchange@aol.com

Special Offer - Free DVD with Hotel Reservation!

2008-09-26T21:15:00.004-04:00

Leftbooks.com

an online activist bookseller - supports the

Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/North America Labor Conference - V - Conferencia Cuba/Venezuela/Mexico/Norte America,Dec. 5, 6, 7 in Tijuana, MX

Leftbooks.com will send you a FREE DVD with Hotel Palacio Azteca room reservation for both Friday and Saturday nights Dec. 5 and 6 at the special Cuba Labor Conference rate that includes breakfasts and Saturday dinner.

RESERVE before October 15 and choose: 1) Posada Carriles: Terrorism Made in USA; 2) Mission Against Terror; or 3) One Man's Story: Philip Agee, Cuba, and the CIA

SEND your Hotel Palacio Azteca registration confirmation number to: laborexchange@action-mail.org with your address and FREE DVD selection.

Reservations can be made at: Reservaciones de Hotel:

Hotel Palacio Azteca
Blvd Cuauhtemoc Sur #213 Colonia Davila
22400 Tijuana, Mexico

*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660
Single/Sencilla Room $98 U.S. Dollars • Double/Doble Room $141 U.S. Dollars
(This will included two breakfasts and one dinner)
(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena)

Please mention the/Favor de mencionar para un descueanto al:
Cuba Labor Conference to get the special price.
Reservations should be made as soon as possible/Realice su reservación lo antes possible.
*If you have a problem please call 313 587 9285 or laborexchange@aol.com

V Labor Conference growing! New panelists!

2008-09-26T11:28:00.004-04:00

Representatives of the Philippines and Haiti are new participants this year!
Dec. 5, 6 and 7, 2008 - Special program with families of Cuban Five on Dec. 5!
Register NOW! Reserve your hotel room at the Hotel Palacio Azteca ask for the "Cuba Labor Conference" rate

*Toll Free from USA 1 888 901 3720 Toll Free From Mexico 01 8000266660
Single/Sencilla Room $98 U.S. Dollars • Double/Doble Room $141 U.S. Dollars
(This will included two breakfasts and one dinner)

(Este precio incluye dos desayunos y una cena)

Paul Loulou Chery, Secretary -Gen'l., Confederation of Haitian Workers (CTH)
Elmer LaBog, Chairperson, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU)
Ramon Cardona, General Secretary, WFTU, America Region

Invited Panelists/Invitados (partial):

CUBA: Ernesto Freire Cazanas, Head Officer, Foreign Relations of C.T.C.; Carmen Godinez, CTC of Cuba; Ramon Cardona, General Secretary, WFTU, America Region; VENEZUELA: Representantes de Venezuela; ECUADOR: Confederacion de Trabajadores del Ecuador; BOLIVIA: Representante Internacional de C.O.B.; NICARAGUA: Representante de Nicaragua; COLOMBIA: Edgar Paez, SINALTRAINAL; HAITI: Paul Loulou Chery, secretary general of the Confederation of Haitian Workers (CTH); PHILIPPINES: Elmer LaBog, Chairperson, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU); MEXICO/Estados Unidos: Elvira Arellano and Emma Lozano, La Familia Latina Unida; MEXICO: Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas (SME); ESTADOS UNIDOS: Cristina Vasquez, UNITE-HERE