First Diversity Conference Finds Commitment to Change
March 25, 2008
San Antonio, TX — IUE-CWA held its first ever Diversity Conference, drawing together local activists committed to expanding the union's reach.
"For our movement to be successful we must ensure that every member has a seat - and feels comfortable - at the table," said IUE-CWA President Jim Clark. "Our union must reflect its membership."
Participants attended workshops on how to run local union diversity committees and ensure a diverse voice in November's elections.
"The labor movement is taking diversity seriously and your efforts here today are helping to advance the cause," Roz Pelles, the head of the AFL-CIO Civil Rights Department, told the crowd.
She outlined that diversity comes in many forms, ranging from race and gender to sexual orientation.
Also addressing the conference was Rep. Ciro Rodriguez, who remarked on IUE-CWA's more than 50-year history as a progressive social force in the San Antonio area.
A former IUE-CWA Executive Board member, Jaime Martinez, started the city's annual march to honor United Farm Workers founder Cesar Chavez. Conference participants joined in the march, which followed the conference.
The march draws thousands who demonstrate in support of making Chavez's birthday a national holiday.
The grand marshal of the parade, Chavez's nephew Federico, remarked that it was the labor movement who opened opportunities for workers of all colors.
"You should be proud of your legacy," Chavez said in addressing the conference. "You built the foundation of this country."
Clark pledged to make diversity a key principle in the education of local union leaders. "We must build on what we have started at this conference," he stated.
