Dear friends, foes, bloggers, and web cruisers,

There’s a fight going on right now. Its happening in Houston this time, where janitors are striking and coming together to fight for decent wages, healthcare, and perhaps more importantly, dignity and respect. Houston’s the only major city in the country that still utilizes the federal minimum wage as a standard for paying janitors. The workers are mostly Latina, mostly Mexicans and Guatemalan, don’t have health care, work ridiculous hours for little dignity and respect, are around toxic chemicals during almost all their work hours. They are fighting for their lives. How do I know? I researched it for over a year with the campaign.

Please go to the Houston Justice for Janitors site or the Indymedia site and support in whatever way you can. A strike fund is being put together. Food is gathering. Send letters to the editors of the Houston Chronicle, the Houston Press, even the LA Times. Make noise wherever you walk and wherever you drive.

SEIU’s unionizing drive in Houston is historic - its one of the largest in Texas and the South. Its building on years and years of strategy and organizing in other major cities. Houston’s not a union town by any objective measure, so this campaign is even more important.

Posted by Vivek on Tuesday, October 31st, 2006 at 1:18 am.