Anyone have a copy of the offending article? Can you post it?
Union Reformer Evicted from House of Labour
UFCW Activist escorted out for distributing socialist magazine
Union reform activist Steve Guiliano, a member of UFCW Local 1000a in Toronto, shook things up at the Ontario Federation of Labour Convention this week. Guiliano, attending the convention along with members of the activist group Ontario Common Front, was evicted from the convention floor for distributing copies of Socialist Action magazine to UFCW delegates.
The publication contained an article about an incident earlier this year when Local 1000a officials disrupted a meeting hosted by Socialist Action at which Guiliano was to be a featured speaker.
Guiliano had this to say about his visit to the machine's house:
quote:
"The approximately 60 delegates from UFCW received a special suprise from me as I crashed the convention floor. I gave out free copies of Socialist Action to about 3/4 of the UFCW delagates before I was removed for giving out unapproved litature to convention delegates. It appears that all litature given out inside the convention hall must be approved."
I would like to see the *offending* material as well.
It is always amazing .. the machine is famous for spouting off about the freedom of speech and freedom of expression, it is plastered all over the official sites.
They have a special section which boasts the Supreme Court ruling which gives the machine the right to *leaflet* their literature all over the employers property.
This exercise in Democracy cannot be practised or tolerated in the machine halls huh?
[ 12-06-2001: Message edited by: siggy ]
There's a link right on the front page in the news item itself (where it says "Socialist Action") but here it is again anyway.
http://www.geocities.com/youth4sa/ufcw-canada.html
[ 12-06-2001: Message edited by: remote viewer ]
So Steve was distributing the information which revealed the machine's deplorable disruption at a Social Action meeting. The meeting where the machineheads threw a *tantrum* and tried to disrupt Democracy in it's tracks?
Well jesus! .. no wonder! 
.. the machine didn't want anyone to see that. How would you like it if someone was going around telling the whole truth about you? You know how embarrassing it is if the world can see you make an ass of yourself? Even worse if there's proof!! 
[ 12-06-2001: Message edited by: siggy ]
Thanks for the link remote viewer. Actually though i'd seen that story already, and I was wondering if steve had anything new?
Steve, good job. I wish I was there with you. I love it what they're exposed for the frauds and Hippocrits(yes it's spelled wrong, think about it) they truely are. Freedom of speach except in the house of labour eh? Piss and moan, piss and moan about their rights and their reputations. All the while they try and stiffle, discourage, belittle, betray, and destroy their own members for questioning them on their failed policies and questionable conduct. Good for you Steve, we're all proud of you.
Here's a recent editorial from the Toronto Star about the OFL convention and the mainstream's woes. Notice that the usual excuses are being trotted out: the government, "raiding", the employers, blah, blah, blah. Having read about Steve's treatment at the OFL convention, what do we really think is to blame?
A union activist is booted out of a Federation of Labour convention to distributing socialist literature! What kind of message is being sent to workers? This is the kind of thing that you might expect at the annual meeting of some big corporation.
quote:
Yesterday, Willie Lambert, an Oakville bus driver, ran against Samuelson for president on a pro-activism platform. While Lambert lost, he still got one of every three votes, an indication of some dissatisfaction with the OFL's direction.
Hey - there seems to be some dissention in the ranks! Anybody know anything about this Lambert? If he's a bus driver, would that make him ATU? CAW? Teamster, maybe? I'd love to know if any of the union bureaucrats actually got behind his campaign, or if that 33% vote came straight from the rank and file delegates.