WEBVTT - Trans Day of Solidarity 0:00:05.600 --> 0:00:09.600 It it could happen here. Yeah, that's the podcast that you're 0:00:09.640 --> 0:00:11.600 listening to. It's also the thing that is happening. The 0:00:11.600 --> 0:00:14.760 thing that is happening is it is a kind of 0:00:14.840 --> 0:00:17.360 rough time to be a transperson in the US and 0:00:17.440 --> 0:00:22.480 also in most other countries. And you know, we do 0:00:23.440 --> 0:00:26.120 a lot of episodes on this show about how it's 0:00:26.200 --> 0:00:28.159 rough and why it's rough and the specific things that 0:00:28.200 --> 0:00:30.920 are happening. But also sometimes we do we do the 0:00:30.920 --> 0:00:32.400 other part of the podcast, which is to put it 0:00:32.440 --> 0:00:35.480 back together part of the podcast, or in this one, 0:00:36.200 --> 0:00:39.960 I this is more of a bring to birth a 0:00:40.000 --> 0:00:42.319 new world from the ashes of the old episode. And 0:00:42.360 --> 0:00:45.720 in order to talk about doing that, we're talking to 0:00:45.800 --> 0:00:48.960 Samantha Medina, who's an organizer for Donut Workings United and 0:00:49.000 --> 0:00:51.920 also the Coalition of Independent Unions and Shineyid who is 0:00:51.920 --> 0:00:55.800 an organizer for the CiU and also the IWW. And yeah, 0:00:55.840 --> 0:00:57.120 both you two. Welcome to the show. 0:00:57.520 --> 0:00:59.560 Hey, thanks for having us, good to be on. 0:01:00.280 --> 0:01:02.680 Great to talk to both of you. And so the 0:01:02.720 --> 0:01:06.319 specific thing that Yeah, I wanted to talk about today 0:01:06.560 --> 0:01:09.680 is the trans Day of Solidarity that is being organized 0:01:09.720 --> 0:01:13.039 in Portland right now. And Yeah, I wanted to I 0:01:13.040 --> 0:01:16.880 guess we should start with what is this event, who 0:01:16.959 --> 0:01:19.200 is doing it, and then we can get into why 0:01:19.240 --> 0:01:20.039 it is being done. 0:01:21.080 --> 0:01:25.120 Sure thing, So, the Trans Day of Solidarity is an 0:01:25.120 --> 0:01:28.280 event being put on right now by the Coalition of 0:01:28.280 --> 0:01:34.960 Independent Unions, and it's an event that's basically about both 0:01:35.120 --> 0:01:38.880 celebrating trans people in the labor movement and the worker's 0:01:38.920 --> 0:01:43.920 movement as a whole, highlighting the importance of workplace in 0:01:44.000 --> 0:01:48.320 union organizing for trans communities as a way for us 0:01:48.360 --> 0:01:51.080 both to survive but also to struggle towards our own liberation. 0:01:51.680 --> 0:01:57.280 And finally, it's a way of it's a way of 0:01:57.880 --> 0:02:02.360 sort of us clarifying how we can start using workplace 0:02:02.440 --> 0:02:07.000 struggle as a means of turning the tide against the 0:02:07.040 --> 0:02:07.800 current genocide. 0:02:07.800 --> 0:02:10.400 With this, Yeah, that covers most of it. 0:02:11.200 --> 0:02:12.880 I think the only thing that I'd like to add 0:02:12.960 --> 0:02:17.320 is a lot of what this event is around is 0:02:17.320 --> 0:02:22.079 bringing awareness to the trans community and specifically our experience 0:02:22.160 --> 0:02:25.919 within the labor movement and on the job. And it 0:02:25.960 --> 0:02:28.840 is a way, as Shaneide mentioned, to kind of like 0:02:29.720 --> 0:02:34.520 highlight exactly what unions do and can do for trans 0:02:34.560 --> 0:02:37.320 people well at the same time also giving us a 0:02:37.360 --> 0:02:42.680 moment to remind unions that they should be doing more. 0:02:42.840 --> 0:02:44.160 Even if what they're already. 0:02:43.840 --> 0:02:47.680 Doing is great, they could always do more. And especially 0:02:47.680 --> 0:02:49.600 in a time right now where trans people are facing 0:02:49.639 --> 0:02:55.000 the discriminations particular to us across this country right now, 0:02:55.040 --> 0:02:57.880 and as she mentioned, the world, but focusing on the 0:02:57.960 --> 0:03:03.760 United States, it's really important that the avenues that are 0:03:03.800 --> 0:03:05.760 there to protect us are aware. 0:03:05.480 --> 0:03:07.040 Of how it to protect us. 0:03:07.240 --> 0:03:09.600 So I think this is our opportunity to kind of 0:03:09.600 --> 0:03:12.079 remind unions to step it up a little bit. 0:03:12.800 --> 0:03:14.720 Yeah, and I mean I think I think another thing 0:03:14.760 --> 0:03:18.440 that's kind of important about this in particular is, yeah, 0:03:18.520 --> 0:03:21.400 you know about bunch of YouTube are intimately aware of this. 0:03:21.560 --> 0:03:24.679 But I don't know if overrepresented is the right term. 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:28.000 But like trans people, like literally right now in particular, 0:03:28.320 --> 0:03:32.160 are effectively the vanguard of new union organizing. They are 0:03:32.720 --> 0:03:35.400 you know, enormously like quote unquole, I guess, I guess 0:03:35.440 --> 0:03:37.760 overrepresentati or whatever that's the word you want to use 0:03:37.920 --> 0:03:41.120 in in you know, like among union organizers a lot 0:03:41.160 --> 0:03:43.800 of actually and then this I think is you know, 0:03:43.800 --> 0:03:46.120 another thing I'm excited about for this is that like 0:03:46.960 --> 0:03:49.560 y'all are kind of like at the forefront I guess 0:03:49.560 --> 0:03:53.160 of like what the new sort of union organizing stuff 0:03:53.280 --> 0:03:55.640 is and how it's how it's sort of you know, 0:03:55.680 --> 0:03:58.400 how how it's been working, and so like that the 0:03:58.480 --> 0:04:00.440 fact that this is like the one place where there's 0:04:00.440 --> 0:04:03.000 actually a lot of us and that you know, is 0:04:03.760 --> 0:04:05.320 a place where there's enough of us that it actually 0:04:05.320 --> 0:04:09.240 matters is important and that you know that that works 0:04:09.280 --> 0:04:10.760 in a lot of directions at the same At the 0:04:10.800 --> 0:04:11.480 same time. 0:04:12.360 --> 0:04:16.479 Yeah, I mean, I think it's good to acknowledge that, like, yeah, 0:04:16.520 --> 0:04:19.200 there are a lot of trans people that are organizing 0:04:19.240 --> 0:04:21.560 their workplaces. There's a lot of trans people taking part 0:04:21.600 --> 0:04:24.640 in their unions, and you know, a lot of that 0:04:24.680 --> 0:04:26.599 I think comes out of necessity, like if we're not 0:04:26.760 --> 0:04:31.479 there to discuss our needs with these unions or to 0:04:31.640 --> 0:04:34.480 create our own unions at a necessity where like maybe 0:04:34.680 --> 0:04:38.440 our CIS coworkers don't understand the struggle that we face 0:04:38.480 --> 0:04:39.320 on the shop floor, so. 0:04:39.360 --> 0:04:41.279 By reminding them, we're able to make it better. You know. 0:04:41.400 --> 0:04:43.760 Like all that's great and true and everything, but I 0:04:43.800 --> 0:04:47.280 think it's also really good to acknowledge that, like LGBTQ 0:04:47.440 --> 0:04:53.440 people in general, whether they just be trands or otherwise 0:04:54.240 --> 0:04:58.719 have been organizing and organizing their workplaces for decades now, 0:04:59.120 --> 0:05:00.920 So I think a lot of this like, yeah, we're 0:05:00.920 --> 0:05:03.120 seeing a lot more trans people involved, but we're also 0:05:03.160 --> 0:05:06.600 seeing a lot more recognition and visibility of trans people 0:05:07.279 --> 0:05:09.280 than ever bookedore right. 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:11.120 Well, and part of the reason we're so involved is 0:05:11.160 --> 0:05:14.760 because it's a matter of basic survival. Right. The average 0:05:14.920 --> 0:05:19.600 trans masculine and non binary person make about seventy percent 0:05:20.080 --> 0:05:23.040 of the media and US wages, whereas transpendent people make 0:05:23.120 --> 0:05:28.520 sixty percent. And this is below like compared to SIS people. 0:05:28.640 --> 0:05:33.919 You know, that's that's wild, right. The level of homelessness, 0:05:33.279 --> 0:05:38.800 of discrimination of job, loss of hours being reduced, punishment 0:05:38.920 --> 0:05:41.200 of sexual harassment on the job is just you know, 0:05:41.279 --> 0:05:44.880 it's it's unconscionable, and it always has been, even in 0:05:44.920 --> 0:05:49.640 the good days. It was garbage and miserable and honestly 0:05:49.680 --> 0:05:51.240 took a lot of us out. 0:05:51.960 --> 0:05:54.000 Yeah, And I mean, you know, like part of part 0:05:54.040 --> 0:05:55.440 of the thing with that rud is like that all 0:05:55.480 --> 0:05:57.880 of that has knock on effects, right, you know, if 0:05:58.560 --> 0:06:00.480 you can't get a job and the job you can 0:06:00.560 --> 0:06:03.599 get pay less, A lot of this forces people, you know, 0:06:03.760 --> 0:06:06.600 like the rate of homelessness is unbelievably hot people get 0:06:06.640 --> 0:06:09.320 evicted constantly, and this, you know, this, this, this, all 0:06:09.400 --> 0:06:12.760 this ties together with sort of like transhousing struggles, because 0:06:12.880 --> 0:06:17.560 that's a huge thing. And yeah, the conferences, this is like, yeah, 0:06:17.560 --> 0:06:18.960 a lot of a lot more of us end up dead. 0:06:19.080 --> 0:06:21.320 And the way that we don't end up dead is 0:06:21.360 --> 0:06:23.520 by fight, is by fighting. And one of the places 0:06:23.520 --> 0:06:26.200 that you know, like one of the places we've gotten 0:06:26.279 --> 0:06:27.960 good at is fighting in the workplace. 0:06:29.000 --> 0:06:31.280 Absolutely, And I like, I mean, I'm talking from my 0:06:31.320 --> 0:06:34.560 own experiences, you know, as an organizer and as an 0:06:34.600 --> 0:06:39.640 IWW member for god seventeen years now, Like wow, yeah, 0:06:39.760 --> 0:06:42.000 it's like I think about all the major campaigns that 0:06:42.000 --> 0:06:45.080 I've seen, and all of them, all of them have 0:06:45.120 --> 0:06:48.400 had trans people at as core organizers for each and 0:06:48.400 --> 0:06:53.039 every shop from the Canvasser's strikes to Burgerville to any 0:06:53.160 --> 0:06:57.320 number of like fast food shops and service sector shops 0:06:57.320 --> 0:07:03.800 and retail shops. Like every single time, there are folks 0:07:03.800 --> 0:07:07.279 that are are trends, that are playing key rules. Which 0:07:07.360 --> 0:07:11.560 is given that we're what probably between two and four 0:07:11.600 --> 0:07:14.480 percent of the population at least, uh, you know, at 0:07:14.520 --> 0:07:17.080 least according to current testaments, probably gonna be higher, but 0:07:17.880 --> 0:07:21.560 you know that's shouldn't be possible. 0:07:21.840 --> 0:07:23.160 Yes, that is shocked. 0:07:23.200 --> 0:07:25.600 It makes no sense except for the fact that well, 0:07:25.680 --> 0:07:28.680 survivability bias. Motherfuckers, it's this or we're dead. 0:07:31.440 --> 0:07:35.880 Yeah, like no, I mean yeah, very well, no, no, no, 0:07:35.920 --> 0:07:36.720 it's I. 0:07:36.760 --> 0:07:39.440 Mean that is the blatant truth, right, And I mean, like, 0:07:39.640 --> 0:07:41.800 even if we're not talking about life and death, I mean, 0:07:41.840 --> 0:07:43.560 it's the difference of whether we have access to a 0:07:43.600 --> 0:07:49.600 bathroom to you, you know, yeah, like you know, like yes, 0:07:49.720 --> 0:07:52.240 of course this is also about life and death. But like, 0:07:52.360 --> 0:07:54.960 you know, I think another thing that trans people based 0:07:55.080 --> 0:07:57.480 a lot is like access to health care, or really 0:07:57.680 --> 0:08:00.920 the lack thereof access to health care, and especially healthcare 0:08:01.000 --> 0:08:04.320 that will actually get us, you know, the medication that 0:08:04.320 --> 0:08:06.000 we need to be on or the surgeries that we need, 0:08:06.040 --> 0:08:10.840 because again, these are issues that help with dysphoria, and 0:08:11.120 --> 0:08:14.560 we all know the statistics on how dyspory affects people 0:08:14.560 --> 0:08:17.840 of all ages, and that is again a matter of 0:08:17.880 --> 0:08:21.000 life and death. So like, I don't think that's wrong 0:08:21.040 --> 0:08:23.040 to not sugarcoat that stagey. 0:08:22.800 --> 0:08:23.440 Yeah, right. 0:08:24.040 --> 0:08:25.800 And there's another side to it too, is that like 0:08:25.960 --> 0:08:27.880 this is also a point of community. This is a 0:08:27.920 --> 0:08:32.160 point of actually like folks from you know, it's meeting 0:08:32.240 --> 0:08:34.280 up with other trans folks, but it's also like working 0:08:34.280 --> 0:08:37.120 together with others, like with CIS coworkers and friends. Right, 0:08:37.480 --> 0:08:40.679 this is a point of belonging and togetherness and of 0:08:40.679 --> 0:08:43.840 being able to really be there for your neighbors and 0:08:43.880 --> 0:08:48.440 your friends and your coworkers in ways that like and 0:08:48.480 --> 0:08:50.640 to be a part of community, which is something that 0:08:50.880 --> 0:08:54.800 is often stripped of us. Right. Yes, it's about survival 0:08:54.960 --> 0:08:57.080 and it's about what we need to do in order 0:08:57.120 --> 0:08:59.440 to keep breathing, but it's also about we need to 0:08:59.440 --> 0:09:02.600 do to live, you know, to go beyond survival, to 0:09:02.640 --> 0:09:06.000 have joy and to have enough money to make it through, 0:09:06.040 --> 0:09:09.119 and you know, maybe people to actually have something for ourselves, 0:09:09.679 --> 0:09:12.160 maybe be able to not have the constant anxiety but 0:09:12.240 --> 0:09:16.880 instead spend more time being happy about who we are. 0:09:19.679 --> 0:09:25.840 Ceacy to overlook that, but again biased sample source, But 0:09:26.120 --> 0:09:29.800 almost all my fondest memories are from being side by 0:09:29.800 --> 0:09:31.439 side with my fellow workers. 0:09:31.120 --> 0:09:32.600 Right absolutely. 0:09:32.640 --> 0:09:35.640 And I think also, you know, like time's gone long 0:09:35.760 --> 0:09:38.120 enough now where you know, trans people are starting to 0:09:38.120 --> 0:09:40.360 be something that people are aware of, something people are 0:09:40.360 --> 0:09:41.920 talking about, whether. 0:09:41.679 --> 0:09:44.040 That's in the best ways or not. We're at least 0:09:44.040 --> 0:09:44.520 more than we. 0:09:46.920 --> 0:09:51.800 And I you know, I think like organizing in general 0:09:51.920 --> 0:09:57.079 community in general, whether that's you know, community, uh, within 0:09:57.120 --> 0:09:59.680 the city you live in, or within your workplace. You know, 0:09:59.840 --> 0:10:04.600 like a lot of our success at being able to 0:10:05.679 --> 0:10:07.680 live the lives that we want to have or be 0:10:07.800 --> 0:10:11.120 the people that we want to be and be respected 0:10:11.160 --> 0:10:14.439 for that really does come down to our family members, 0:10:14.840 --> 0:10:21.120 our co workers, our friends, and ultimately complete strangers who 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:23.600 we need to rely on. 0:10:23.880 --> 0:10:24.080 You know. 0:10:24.160 --> 0:10:28.079 I hate to use the word ally, but we need 0:10:28.160 --> 0:10:31.840 our allies more than ever, and it's about time that 0:10:31.840 --> 0:10:36.199 they step up to and that starts typically speaking in 0:10:36.240 --> 0:10:38.040 your community and in your workplace. 0:10:38.760 --> 0:10:40.040 I think it's also really. 0:10:39.800 --> 0:10:42.320 Good to address the fact that, like, you know, when 0:10:42.320 --> 0:10:45.800 we're talking about trans issues and organizing around them and 0:10:45.880 --> 0:10:48.560 like organizing the workplace in your community and all that, Like, 0:10:48.679 --> 0:10:53.360 it's it's also important to acknowledge how intersectional the trans experiences. 0:10:53.440 --> 0:10:55.720 And that's something I really wanted to try to We 0:10:56.320 --> 0:11:00.120 got talking about specifically about unions and things like that, 0:11:00.200 --> 0:11:05.079 because also unions are an incredibly intersectional piece of politics 0:11:05.520 --> 0:11:08.920 and life that we need to appreciate. Because when we 0:11:09.000 --> 0:11:15.120 talked about these statistics affecting trans people. They affect disabled 0:11:15.120 --> 0:11:19.560 trans people and black and brown trans people at much 0:11:20.120 --> 0:11:25.280 much more much high rates then they affect white trans people. 0:11:25.400 --> 0:11:28.840 And I think that unions being something and not just unions, 0:11:28.880 --> 0:11:33.000 I mean every aspect of organizing and community building really 0:11:33.040 --> 0:11:34.080 needs to pay attention to this. 0:11:34.200 --> 0:11:38.280 But I think this is something that is so ingrained 0:11:38.520 --> 0:11:42.040 in unions that unions have been fighting for this sort of. 0:11:43.640 --> 0:11:48.480 Protections that are very intersectional, you know, like whether they're 0:11:48.520 --> 0:11:52.559 protecting women in the workplace, whether they're protecting black and 0:11:52.600 --> 0:11:55.800 brown people, whether they're protecting disabled people, or whether they're 0:11:55.800 --> 0:11:59.760 protecting trans people. That is a large part of why 0:11:59.840 --> 0:12:02.000 you unions were established. You know, we talked about wages 0:12:02.000 --> 0:12:04.280 and working hours a lot, and that is all fine 0:12:04.280 --> 0:12:06.320 and dandy, and it's wonderful, and that's something that is 0:12:06.840 --> 0:12:10.319 a base core value of unions. But I don't think 0:12:10.320 --> 0:12:15.439 it's celebrated enough how much work unions did in equality 0:12:15.480 --> 0:12:18.120 in this country. And I think this is just a 0:12:18.160 --> 0:12:22.000 continuation of that tradition. And trans people just happen to 0:12:22.000 --> 0:12:24.080 be one of the largest topics right now, and we 0:12:24.200 --> 0:12:26.640 tend to have one of the largest targets on our 0:12:26.679 --> 0:12:29.120 back more than we've ever had before. 0:12:30.880 --> 0:12:33.239 And so yeah, I think that's why. 0:12:33.000 --> 0:12:36.440 We discussed unions in relation to this, because for you know, 0:12:37.920 --> 0:12:41.439 working class folk, that's where a lot of our organizing begins. 0:12:43.960 --> 0:12:46.200 Yeah, and I think I think it's actually honest, it's 0:12:46.240 --> 0:12:50.520 had an interesting impacts on the kind of union organizing 0:12:50.520 --> 0:12:53.800 as happening because you know, like one of one of 0:12:53.840 --> 0:12:59.760 the sort of consequences of transferbent discrimination in workplaces is 0:13:00.040 --> 0:13:03.200 that you get a lot of trans people in what 0:13:03.400 --> 0:13:07.160 is Okay, I refuse to call it service sector. I'm 0:13:07.160 --> 0:13:09.320 gonna there's gonna be a whole episode that's been yelling 0:13:09.360 --> 0:13:12.920 about the service sector that's coming to a recording thing 0:13:13.000 --> 0:13:16.640 near you, specifically like job jobs and fast food jobs 0:13:16.800 --> 0:13:21.080 that are very low wage, like high turnover things, and 0:13:21.080 --> 0:13:23.360 particularly fast who's been a very interesting because that's that's 0:13:23.360 --> 0:13:27.360 a sector that like a lot of trade unions just 0:13:27.520 --> 0:13:30.640 completely ignored, like they just gave up on and you know, 0:13:30.720 --> 0:13:32.599 like they've been starting to organize like Starbucks in the 0:13:32.640 --> 0:13:36.439 past few years, right, but like you know, like if 0:13:36.600 --> 0:13:38.040 you want to look at the people who've actually been 0:13:38.040 --> 0:13:40.319 trying to organize fast food workers, it turns out it's 0:13:40.320 --> 0:13:43.560 a bunch of trans people because because because who works, 0:13:43.720 --> 0:13:45.160 because who actually does this stuff? 0:13:45.280 --> 0:13:45.439 Right? 0:13:46.800 --> 0:13:48.560 Turns out turns out. 0:13:49.040 --> 0:13:53.439 Yeah, there's a lot to be said about that, like 0:13:53.559 --> 0:13:57.400 with larger unions, and larger unions, especially within the trades, 0:13:57.880 --> 0:13:59.520 have done a lot of great work, you know, and 0:13:59.559 --> 0:14:01.920 that's the lovely and I appreciate them for that. 0:14:01.960 --> 0:14:04.040 But on the other hand, they really did turn their 0:14:04.080 --> 0:14:07.600 back on the service sector industry for the silliest reason possible, 0:14:07.640 --> 0:14:08.480 which is that. 0:14:08.559 --> 0:14:12.440 High turnover is just too difficult. And we want to 0:14:12.440 --> 0:14:14.840 talk about people, Yeah, it's just too difficult. 0:14:14.880 --> 0:14:16.319 You know, who wants. 0:14:16.080 --> 0:14:22.200 To organize something difficult, right, like that might cost too 0:14:22.240 --> 0:14:25.560 much money or not make them enough money, And which 0:14:25.600 --> 0:14:28.480 I find highly hypocritical of unions in general. I mean, 0:14:28.560 --> 0:14:30.600 like not of all unions, but like, if that is 0:14:30.600 --> 0:14:33.120 a stance that unions will take to not organize the 0:14:33.160 --> 0:14:36.480 service industry, being a union seems to be exactly why 0:14:36.520 --> 0:14:38.680 you would target those industries, right, because those are where 0:14:38.720 --> 0:14:41.960 workers needed most. And if we want to talk about 0:14:42.000 --> 0:14:45.240 high turnover rates being the reason, who do we think 0:14:45.320 --> 0:14:49.040 is affected the most by high turnover rates? You know, 0:14:49.640 --> 0:14:52.320 like it is hard to find a job as a 0:14:52.360 --> 0:14:57.040 trans person, let alone keep a job for any length 0:14:57.080 --> 0:15:01.160 of time, there's oftentimes no upward mobility for trans people 0:15:01.320 --> 0:15:04.640 in that job, and so you pace a variety of 0:15:04.640 --> 0:15:07.520 life issues when you're not making enough money, which inevitably 0:15:07.640 --> 0:15:11.120 leads to you losing your job and adding to the high. 0:15:11.000 --> 0:15:12.640 Turnover rates in these companies. 0:15:12.800 --> 0:15:15.320 This is exactly why, and we can get into you know, 0:15:15.360 --> 0:15:17.120 what we've been up to and what we're doing later, 0:15:17.160 --> 0:15:20.800 but that's exactly why the CiU and the IWW and 0:15:21.040 --> 0:15:24.120 other organizations like us do what we do is because 0:15:24.160 --> 0:15:26.360 we believe in helping the workers that need it most, 0:15:27.160 --> 0:15:29.800 who are underrepresented and not taken care of by the 0:15:29.840 --> 0:15:30.600 larger units. 0:15:31.520 --> 0:15:34.120 Because we are those workers, right, I mean, that is 0:15:34.160 --> 0:15:36.640 the thing we're able to do this and put you know, 0:15:36.720 --> 0:15:39.520 I mean, we'll put the fucking hours in because that's us. 0:15:40.400 --> 0:15:43.600 We're doing this because it's the only way out, right. 0:15:44.120 --> 0:15:46.680 So like when we schedule something like or like create 0:15:46.720 --> 0:15:51.480 an event like the trans Day of Solidarity, we're doing 0:15:51.600 --> 0:15:56.440 this because both on the backbone of years of experience, 0:15:56.640 --> 0:16:00.720 but especially like collectively but also bringing in new organizers 0:16:00.720 --> 0:16:03.520 because we knew how we can think back to how 0:16:03.520 --> 0:16:06.720 we were brought in, right, we can talk think back 0:16:06.760 --> 0:16:09.520 to our friends, our allies, and our especially our transfellow 0:16:09.520 --> 0:16:14.360 workers who were the ones who mentored us well before 0:16:14.360 --> 0:16:17.800 the tipping point in a lot of cases, right, because 0:16:17.880 --> 0:16:20.720 this is why we're here, and like thinking about who 0:16:20.760 --> 0:16:27.040 this affects, right, I mean, like it affects trans people deeply, 0:16:27.080 --> 0:16:28.960 and it can cut off our access to the healthcare 0:16:29.000 --> 0:16:31.120 that many, but not all of us very much need 0:16:31.120 --> 0:16:34.080 to keep going. And the threats above us, you know, 0:16:34.120 --> 0:16:36.640 only increase as the like you know, the oppressions you 0:16:36.720 --> 0:16:40.240 face are are increasing. Right, if you're a transpression of color, 0:16:40.240 --> 0:16:43.120 if you're disabled, like you were saying, right, like, shit 0:16:43.240 --> 0:16:47.360 gets worse, it gets harder, The sword over your head 0:16:47.440 --> 0:16:52.440 dangles a little closer, so we work to figure a 0:16:52.440 --> 0:16:57.320 way to get out from under it. But it's also 0:16:57.400 --> 0:16:59.560 like why the Trans Day of Solidarity, Like when we 0:16:59.560 --> 0:17:02.640 talk about it, it's it's an event that that is 0:17:02.680 --> 0:17:05.760 what it is because it's designed to not simply be 0:17:05.960 --> 0:17:07.720 us just speaking into the wind, but it's meant to 0:17:07.760 --> 0:17:11.200 be a practical thing. Right. The the whole event itself 0:17:11.280 --> 0:17:13.960 is is like a rally with you know, trans speakers 0:17:14.000 --> 0:17:17.479 from you know, a number of different shops and unions 0:17:17.480 --> 0:17:21.320 in town. But it's also then just quickly becomes a 0:17:21.359 --> 0:17:24.240 flying picket, right, And this is a tradition that I 0:17:24.240 --> 0:17:26.800 think we do miss a little bit in this country. 0:17:27.240 --> 0:17:29.120 The flying picket's an old one and it's a it's 0:17:29.119 --> 0:17:32.360 a fucking goldie. It's where you get a big old 0:17:32.400 --> 0:17:35.920 mob of people and you just start going to places 0:17:35.960 --> 0:17:40.400 all over your town and throwing fucking pickets. It's everything 0:17:40.440 --> 0:17:43.800 you love about a breakaway march and also a picket. 0:17:43.840 --> 0:17:48.240 At the same time, it has direct economic leverage to it. 0:17:49.040 --> 0:17:54.120 You can do you know people, it's it took a minute, 0:17:54.400 --> 0:17:56.200 but and you know this is also coming from someone 0:17:56.200 --> 0:17:58.359 who's organized in premierly in Portland, so there's a certain 0:17:58.400 --> 0:18:00.960 bias here. Your locale may have vary. But if you 0:18:01.080 --> 0:18:04.240 organize enough pickets in your city, people might cross them 0:18:04.240 --> 0:18:07.280 at first, they get a lot less likely to the 0:18:07.280 --> 0:18:10.080 more you do them over the years. So the more 0:18:10.080 --> 0:18:12.879 pickets to throw, the less likely people are to cross them. 0:18:12.920 --> 0:18:14.439 And if they are not likely to cross them, that 0:18:14.600 --> 0:18:18.040 impact that you know, increases their impact. So you know 0:18:18.119 --> 0:18:21.159 we're gonna be given our speech, is sure, and we 0:18:21.200 --> 0:18:24.040 are going to speak to our experiences. That's critical and 0:18:24.040 --> 0:18:26.159 then we're also going to ruin some people's day or 0:18:26.320 --> 0:18:27.760 you know, make their day if you're the. 0:18:27.720 --> 0:18:33.399 Workers, Yeah, ruin some bosses day exactly. Just always the 0:18:33.440 --> 0:18:38.840 best kind of day. 0:18:39.400 --> 0:18:43.359 Well, it's also part of the reason, listen, should bosses 0:18:43.440 --> 0:18:45.240 have good days? I'm going to go on a limb 0:18:45.240 --> 0:18:51.720 and say no never ever ever you want to, yeah, 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:55.200 damn straight. At the bare minimum, you get at least 0:18:55.240 --> 0:18:56.880 one less good day than us. 0:18:57.560 --> 0:18:59.720 And you know what, you know what if the bosses 0:18:59.720 --> 0:19:02.800 don't like having these bad days, then they can just 0:19:02.840 --> 0:19:03.800 go find another job. 0:19:04.600 --> 0:19:09.800 Yes, exactly, it's not that same deal, right, They. 0:19:09.640 --> 0:19:14.359 Can actually contribute to their communities, you know, do some 0:19:14.400 --> 0:19:17.320 real work for a change, which in this case is 0:19:18.040 --> 0:19:21.040 sometimes just working a fucking tailla. 0:19:21.160 --> 0:19:27.560 That's okay, speaking speaking of things that suck, we need 0:19:27.560 --> 0:19:30.440 to take an ad break. This is the best ad 0:19:30.440 --> 0:19:32.159 pivot I've been able I've been able to think of 0:19:32.240 --> 0:19:35.520 in the last like six minutes. So we're taking it 0:19:35.600 --> 0:19:38.879 right now that we're going to get this good again 0:19:51.119 --> 0:19:53.800 and we're back. So one of one of the things 0:19:53.800 --> 0:19:58.560 that I also wanted to talk about is about I 0:19:58.560 --> 0:20:01.399 guess just talk a bit about what the Coalition of 0:20:01.400 --> 0:20:06.640 Independent Unions is and how it sort of formed, and yeah, 0:20:06.640 --> 0:20:09.359 I don't know the sort of potentials they're in because 0:20:09.400 --> 0:20:13.960 it's a really interesting organization coalition. 0:20:14.160 --> 0:20:15.480 Yeah, absolutely. 0:20:16.800 --> 0:20:21.600 So the CiU, it's got a long history if we 0:20:21.680 --> 0:20:25.399 really dig deep into it, I mean, effectively, this idea 0:20:25.520 --> 0:20:30.720 started after organizing within Portland for the last gosh, I 0:20:30.720 --> 0:20:31.560 think people. 0:20:31.960 --> 0:20:33.719 May people have been organizing here forever. 0:20:33.800 --> 0:20:37.360 But let's say, how long ago did Burgerville Workers Union start, shanaan. 0:20:38.800 --> 0:20:43.119 Let's see, there's that's a question. If you want to 0:20:43.160 --> 0:20:47.160 talk about the official date we went public shore twenty sixteen. 0:20:47.440 --> 0:20:49.560 If you want to talk about the antecedents, you'll find 0:20:49.600 --> 0:20:57.159 it in the Industrial Research Organizing Group Precarious Workplace. No, 0:20:57.240 --> 0:21:02.240 it is Low Wage Worker Subcommittee the Portland General Membership 0:21:02.280 --> 0:21:06.160 Branch of the IWW circa August of twenty thirteen. Incredible, 0:21:08.160 --> 0:21:10.640 So you're welcome. Yeah, Oh honey, honey, I'm a whap. 0:21:10.880 --> 0:21:13.199 Do you know how many fucking acronyms do we have? 0:21:13.400 --> 0:21:15.800 Oh my god, listen the number of things I had 0:21:15.800 --> 0:21:18.000 to take the GMB when I was BST, despite not 0:21:18.040 --> 0:21:19.920 actually being the TA part of the BST, the only 0:21:20.000 --> 0:21:22.520 T part I'm not part of oh, I could tell 0:21:22.520 --> 0:21:24.680 you about the GOB and the GEB until the Cow's 0:21:24.720 --> 0:21:29.040 come home. But the point is they're antecedents. The CiU 0:21:29.440 --> 0:21:33.600 is a relatively new organization with deep roots in Portland. 0:21:34.760 --> 0:21:37.920 It kind of came out of the flurry of independent 0:21:38.000 --> 0:21:41.720 unions that kind of in fast food service and retail 0:21:41.760 --> 0:21:46.800 that flourished in the wake of the Burgerville Workers Union. 0:21:47.880 --> 0:21:51.960 Burgville Workers Union itself goes public in God, that was 0:21:52.000 --> 0:21:54.199 April of twenty sixteen, because of course it's been that 0:21:54.280 --> 0:22:01.440 fucking long. It was in the works a while before that, God. 0:22:01.680 --> 0:22:02.520 All those meetings. 0:22:04.200 --> 0:22:10.920 The earliest antecedents are arguably the Portland General Membership branch 0:22:10.920 --> 0:22:21.480 of the IWW's Industrial Organizing Research Group, the Precarious Worker Subgroup, 0:22:21.560 --> 0:22:24.080 or maybe it was the Low Wage Workers Subgroup August 0:22:24.119 --> 0:22:30.719 of thirteen. But that's anteceedus, right. This kind of goes public. 0:22:31.000 --> 0:22:33.640 This itself is built on, you know, the Jimmy Johns 0:22:33.680 --> 0:22:37.199 Workers Union, especially around the Twin Cities and earlier in 0:22:36.720 --> 0:22:40.920 the two thousands, and then of course before that, the 0:22:40.960 --> 0:22:46.320 Starbucks Workers Union that had multiple different campaign flourishings. I 0:22:46.320 --> 0:22:49.199