Immigrant rights, worker rights―what’s the connection? The East Central Illinois Jobs with Justice (ECIJWJ) Chapter is hosting a multi-media presentation on the Coalition of Immokalee Workers that will address this question. Part of a month-long examination of the problems and concerns faced by immigrant populations in the U. S., this event is being organized under the auspices of the local Immigration Forum. The ECIJWJ presentation is scheduled for on Oct. 27, 2012 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Channing Murray Foundation (1209 W. Oregon, Urbana). The event is free and open to the general public.
Ricky Baldwin, Field Staff and Organizer, SEIU Local 73, and longtime social justice activist in the Champaign-Urbana area, will facilitate the presentation. He will describe the heroic struggle of a small group of migrant workers who successfully overcame modern-day slavery in the agricultural fields of the U. S. by taking on major fast-food restaurant and food service chains. Additional topics will include ongoing efforts to pressure major supermarket chains to enforce codes of conduct with their suppliers that can extend protections for agricultural workers.
This event is co-sponsored by: C-U Immigration Forum, Channing Murray Foundation, University YMCA, Social Action Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Church.