[act-ma] 2/21 (Thurs) Forty years in the Labor Movement! (e5 @ 7:00 p.m.)

[Suren Moodliar]

Forty years in the Labor Movement!
Lessons from Organizer and Strategist Peter Van Delft

Thursday, February 21, 2013, 7:00 p.m.
encuentro 5 [9 Hamilton Place, Suite 2A, Boston, MA 02108-4715 MAP:
http://binged.it/YRr2Yx ]
right by the Park Street T-stop and the Orpheum Theatre.

At no previous point in its history has the situation of the labor movement
been more dire. At the same time, new waves of immigrant and community
organizing and the rise of middle-class activism may signal renewal for the
movement that brought dignity to millions of workers. This event helps as
look forward by first looking back on Peter's 4 decades of service to the
labor movement.

About Peter:

A longtime activist and a third-generation socialist, Peter Van Delft has
spent more than forty years in the labor movement.  Following World War II
he attended the University of California at Berkeley where he earned an
M.A. in Anthropology and where he was involved in activities leading to
increased admissions and support for low income and students of color.

Until his retirement Peter was a Vice President of New York based, 30,000
member, District 65. Earlier, he had been a member of the National Maritime
Union and of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union.

He was actively involved in the Civil Rights Movement as a member of CORE
(Congress of Racial Equality) and organized union sponsored Freedom Rides
in which more than 150 members participated.

In collaboration with colleagues he fought for contract provisions to
prevent discrimination or harassment of gay workers.  He also worked on
programs addressing health and safety concerns. He also focused on worker
empowerment within their unions, developing training programs on
negotiating and costing contracts, and community organizing.

This event is organized and sponsored by: encuentro 5/Massachusetts Global
Action, the Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture Series, and the Downtown Workers
Center. Snacks and light refreshments will be offered.

Note: this transitional location for encuentro 5 is NOT wheelchair
accessible. In the short-term, events will be livestreamed from encuentro 5
(http://www.encuentro5.org/live ) and community members may also join the
conversation by calling (605) 475-4000 and using access code 766688# For
more information, please leave a message at 888-400-1225.
http://www.encuentro5.org
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