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In 30 minutes, in the dark of night, Republican Senators undid decades of civil rights in Wisconsin. They used a sneaky procedural move to strip collective bargaining rights from public service workers. But the people of Wisconsin aren't giving up. They're planning actions for the rest of the week and NUPGE representatives are there to support them.
Ottawa (10 Mar. 2011) - The Wisconsin Senate, using a sneaky procedural move in the dark of night, succeeded in voting Wednesday to strip nearly all collective bargaining rights from public service workers. The Republican Senators found a way to bypass the legislature's absent Democrats and approve a full frontal attack on public employees and their unions.
"You are cowards!" spectators in the Senate gallery screamed as lawmakers voted. Within hours, a crowd of a few hundred protesters inside the Capitol had grown to an estimated 7,000, more than had been in the building at any point during weeks of protests.
The Wisconsin Senate requires a quorum to approve any measures that spend money. All 14 Senate Democrats fled to Illinois nearly three weeks ago, preventing the chamber from having enough members present to debate and pass Gov. Scott Walker's budget bill. But Wednesday night Republicans removed all spending measures from the legislation and a special committee of lawmakers approved the revised bill a few minutes later.
The move exposes the fact that the Governor's real agenda from the beginning isn't about balancing the state budget; it's about attacking unions and stripping workers of their fundamental labour rights.
NUPGE representatives are in Madison, Wisconsin providing support and solidarity to public service workers and they sent the following report and photos about some of yesterday's events.
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Jim Paul (OPSEU/NUPGE); Vic Wonnacott (MGEU/NUPGE); Doug Evetts (OPSEU/NUPGE)
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Dispatch from Wisconsin
"This is what democracy looks like.
What does democracy look like?
This is what democracy looks like!"
(Protest chant heard in the rotunda of the Madison Capitol building)
Madison is rally town. The protests simply do not stop.
Every day between 8am and 4pm, a steady line of people wait their turn to get inside the Capitol, so they can join the others inside the Rotunda. You have to be patient. There is only one set of open doors.
The Rotunda is where the peaceful occupation occurred a couple of weeks ago and put Madison in the news headlines.
It has been called a shrine for working people.
As soon as you walk in, you can hear hundreds of people singing and chanting, "this land is your land." The acoustics are amazing. People are also shouting: "This is what democracy looks like. What does democracy look like? This is what democracy looks like." Over and over again.
Every day, the Rotunda closes at 4pm. At that time, hundreds of people gather outside to greet the protesters coming out with chants about democracy. Once everybody is out, they call out, "thank you, thank you." It’s like a daily ritual.
In the nearby streets, there are hundreds of people randomly walking around, carrying protest signs as well. They are talking to each other, sharing why they are protesting, sharing their personal motivation and stories.
The entire town is behind the protest. Everywhere you go there are signs on display expressing support. It’s as though every citizen and group in Madison and Wisconsin is behind the protest. Their support is loud and clear.
A rally is being planned for this Saturday, March 12, and more than one hundred thousand people are expected to participate.
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE