No disenchantment for the youth

by Sara Kiesler and Nate Jackson Everywhere you turn, there’s an alarming statistic about America’s youth.

The Atlantic says unemployment is up 55 percent for those aged 16 to 29. The suicide rate is up. Those living at home between the ages of 25 and 34 has jumped 25 percent.

But that hasn’t stopped Washington’s youth from fighting back--for good jobs, for a better future, and for Congress to wake up and create jobs, not cuts.

Emma Klein holds up "Value People Over Money" sign at Occupy Seattle

On Tuesday at the Occupy Seattle movement in Westlake Park, a crowd of over 400 consisting mostly of students attended to speak out about student loans that are breaking them. Jobs are scarce for everyone, but the students said the challenge is great as they wade under a mountain of debt. They came from all over--Seattle Central Community College, University of Washington, Cornish College and more.

The came down in graduation robes and spoke up about how Big Banks have gotten away with criminal acts and then got bailed out, while the gap between the rich and the poor is the highest its been since the depression.

Chants rang up around the park: "Money for jobs and education not for banks and corporations!" and “"The students united will never be divided!"

Students and recent graduates spoke up about the unfair economy, with corporations making record profits while we have to keep paying more.

"I'm tired of tuition going up, Metro (fees) going up, sales tax going up,” said Liam, a recent graduate who has been involved in the Occupy Seattle movement. “Thank you students for supporting us and we support you!" Other young people are fighting back in different ways, by giving their time and volunteer work as much as possible.

On Wednesday, 18-year-old Kitty Jones attended the protest. Despite having been homeless for part of her youth, the senior at Shorecrest High School is an optimist who believes that giving back is the answer and the media is just trying to scare people.

“Being told there's no hope for jobs or futures, how are kids expected to pull up their boot straps and run head-first into this supposedly hopeless economy?” she said.

Kitty volunteered her time this summer collecting signatures for the United States Humane Society ballot measure to help chickens in factory farms, and eventually got offered a job by the non-profit.

But some young people already in the work force have seen the struggle come to a head.

Emma Klein, 28, waved a sign that said “Value People Over Money” as honking cars passed on Westlake Avenue Wednesday evening.

“I definitely think it’s harder to find a job. A lot of my friends are going back to school and getting higher degrees, which increases debt and doesn’t necessarily increase the chance of getting jobs,” said Klein. “At the same time, especially with a movement like this, because so many people are affected and they don’t have resources to live fulfilling lives, they’re willing to risk more.”

As a professional dancer, teacher and performer, Klein is especially effected by cuts in funding that hurt the arts, but she finds inspiration from the unemployed that have less than her and come to Occupy Seattle every day.

“They could be sitting on their couch, but instead they’re coming out to be empowered.”

Fred Wilson is one of those unemployed who is looking for his power among the protestor carrying “We are the 99 percent” signs. The 25-year old construction worker is currently homeless and looking for work.

“The jobs have been just taken away,” he said, “but I’m OK. I’m here.”

Occupy Seattle, We're With You

Hundreds stood with the 99 percent at Westlake Park to demand one thing: good jobs now. Susan Wilkinson speaks at Occupy Seattle in Westlake

Susan Wilkinson has worked her whole life. She never had trouble finding good work until policy makers, banks and greedy CEOs decided to change all the rules, not hire and ship jobs overseas.

Wilkinson is now two years unemployed and is on the verge of running out of the only support she has, but she is not going to take it sitting down. Wearing her green Working Washington T-shirt, she talked to the crowd about what she thought was a solution: passing the American Jobs Act.

“I’ve never not worked in my life,” she said. “We need good jobs now and the American Jobs Act will help get us back to work. I need to work!”

Susan had arrived back from Occupy Wall Street in New York to attend the event in Westlake.

“I see democracy in action at these Occupy events,” she said. “This is what democracy looks like. We don’t want handouts or gifts, we want good jobs and we want them now. We need to pass this American Jobs Act.”

The American Jobs Act is a bill supported by President Obama. It would get people working right now on the work that needs doing around the country. In fact, here in Washington, 9,600 people would be hired to build roads, repair bridges, upgrade schools and do more to invest in the country right now.

We need to let our Senators and Representatives know that we need to work and the American Jobs Act is a way to get us back to it.

Many of us have been part of the "99%" movement in Seattle for weeks. We were gathering to stand against corporate power that has rewarded layoffs, encouraged CEO greed and left the rest of us out in the cold, sometimes literally. We were staying and not backing down as we’ve seen the influence of greedy CEOs drive this economy into a ditch.

Imam Mohamed Sheikh Hassan of Masjid Afrique Mosque stood up to show his support. He wore a traditional fez hat and started his speech pointing to the large group of Somali immigrants standing at the front of the crowd.

“We work hard,” he said. “We work long hours and we never complain, but the airport is firing us for no reason.”

The Hertz rental car company had suspended 32 Somali workers for praying at the workplace even though they had negotiated permission to do so.

“How can we raise our families?” he said. “We need to change the culture and reward hard work, not fire us. We want to work! Put us back to work!”

Then, a five piece brass band playing songs as we danced our way into the night. We marched, sang and held lit candles as we rallied more people to get involved and call their Senators to pass the American Jobs Act.

Leonard Sims took the microphone his voice breaking as he described how his family had suffered from the corporations and CEOs sitting on money instead of investing in our communities.

“I tell my children to work hard,” he said. “Work hard and you’ll be rewarded, but I’m not seeing that. I can’t even get a job.”

He paused.

“Something is wrong,” he said. “Something is wrong when we can’t find work and we want to work. We need jobs right now! We’ve done our part. Now they need to do theirs.”

Even the Mayor of Seattle took to the stage to show his support for the 99 percent to keep fighting for their rights.

“Keep organizing,” he said into the microphone waving his fist. “Keep fighting for good jobs; keep fighting for justice.”

We need the work that the American Jobs Act could provide. We have the talent and the skills, we just need the opportunity. Won’t you call your Senator and ask them to stand up for good jobs right now?

Work That Needs Doing

If you ignore it, it won’t go away.by Nate Jackson

Holding "Build Bridges" signs on an I-5 overpass

They say when something becomes familiar it’s easy to ignore.

We are so used to our crumbling roads and bridges that we forget that it took people to make them and people to maintain them. We just roll over them day in and day out, forgetting that without routine maintenance and constant repair, those roads and bridges will start to weaken. That’s work that needs doing and we need the work.

On November 17th we’re showing people what is right in front of them.

Working families are getting out of their houses and onto bridges. These last few weeks, families and community members have made signs and banners and taken the message that we need to invest in our communities first, not cut more and more services.

Build bridges that are sound. Repair roads that are crumbling. Hire locally and get us back to work doing things that we need right now.

Folks in Tukwila braved the ”structurally deficient” Boeing Access overpass of I-5, a series of bridges built in the early 40’s and 50’s, to spread the word that we need this important work right now.

Other community members in partnership with the Backbone Campaign rose balloons showing the top 1% owning the vast majority of the wealth that working families create. The balloon raised more than just eyebrows over the I-90 Bridge.

Somali airport workers also took to the streets in support of work that needs doing. They donned signs and banners stating that they need good jobs, fair treatment and an opportunity to use their skills to better their community.

I-5 got a double dose when community members marched on Yesler Avenue and dropped a large banner over the highway. Semi-truck drivers and working families honked in support as the community members waved American flags and hoisted signs saying “Good Jobs,” and “Stop the War on Workers.”

We see the needs every day and we are starting to recognize it. We can’t ignore the infrastructure anymore and we will keep getting out there to remind everyone else.  Come join us on November 17 and take a good long look at work that needs doing.

Monday, 5pm, be there!

     Tell Congress

       We Stand with the 99%

     We Need Good Jobs!

Monday Oct. 10 5pm Westlake Park

The economy is rough and the jobs still have not come back. Monday at 5pm in Westlake Park, we are standing with the 99 percent of Americans who have not received bailouts and $1 million bonuses. We stand to tell Wall Street no more bonuses. No more tax cuts. Invest in good jobs, and invest in us.

President Obama has proposed to create jobs by putting $50 billion into our bridges, roads and transit systems. This would be paid for with a tax on millionaires.

But Congress says "NO". It wants to do nothing.

 

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Work That Needs Doing: Union Gospel Mission

Nonprofits struggle to stave off suffering as CEOs refuse to hire. by Nate Jackson

Unfortunately, the Union Gospel Mission is having a busy year.

Lines of people outside Union Gospel Mission

The Union Gospel Mission is a nonprofit that provides emergency shelter as well as other “last resort” services to folks who have been hit hard by this still continuing recession. State services have been chopped and many nonprofit organizations in the area, including the Mission, have had to pick up the slack created by politicians gifting tax giveaways to CEOs while cutting off public services.

Policy makers need to reinvest in us instead of handing out money to CEOs who don’t need it. There is work that needs doing and we need good jobs in our communities.

The Mission provides emergency shelter to over 500 people per night, which is up from previous years. It’s privately funded through individual donations and foundations, but has seen more working families turn to its services. The Mission is partnering with other community groups and is asking for those with the means to help support the organization.

It is cleaning up the mess made by policy makers who have sided with CEOs instead of struggling working families.

We’ve seen savings disappear and back up plans dry up as we’ve stayed unemployed. We’ve fallen through the cracks of social services as state money is ripped away due to budget cuts. We want to work, but when corporations are giving bonuses to millionaire CEOs instead of creating good jobs in our communities we’re stuck.

We are potential wasted.

Without fully funding basic services, education, health care and holding corporations accountable to hire instead of rewarding layoffs we cannot move forward. The work that needs doing is not just roads and bridges, but also growing and supporting workers. How many of us are stuck, forced to rely on services, instead of living up to our full potential?

We have the talent and the skills. We have the potential and the experience; we just do not have the opportunity to get back to work. Society can’t afford to forget us. We the working families are the strength of our economy, not greedy CEOs or out of touch policy makers. We need to invest in our communities not just by building bridges and fixing schools, but also by funding public services that help us get back on our feet and back to work.

We can’t afford to wait anymore. No more tax giveaways to greedy CEOs and out of state corporations. No more rewarding companies for firing people. No more bonuses for putting working families out on the street. We have work that needs doing right here and giving a helping hand to those of us who feel forgotten is a good place to start.

Invest in Infrastructure; Invest in Us

By Nate Jackson When a puddle pulls down a power pole, we’ve got problems.

Telephone poles are Work That Needs Doing

On 15th Ave in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, a power pole finally fell to the ground after what neighbors called a “perma-puddle” eroded its core.

The pole literally rotted from the inside out. Even though inspections supposedly happen on a routine basis, the pole plummeted. Luckily, no one was hurt, but this pole problem shows how far politicians have let our infrastructure sink.

When something as basic as a power line falls to the ground because of a puddle, we have work that needs doing--and we need the work.

Infrastructure is the backbone of any working economy. It’s workers building roads, bridges, water-treatment plants and monitoring power lines. It’s teachers educating our kids and health care workers providing quality healthcare to their patients. When infrastructure is built, repaired and maintained we build a stronger, fairer economy where people have good jobs and a better future.

State, federal and local politicians have not invested in the work that is necessary for our everyday lives. They’ve allowed schools to crumble, roads to shred and hospitals to kick out patients because they’ve decided that banks and CEOs deserve tax handouts more than funding these good jobs and services we need. That’s not right and we should show them where their priorities should be.

There is so much work to be done, but they slip under the radar. We’ve all seen rusted swing sets and cracked pavement. We’ve seen potholes, homeless camping on the sides of freeways, foreclosed homes, overcrowded unemployment offices and patients denied because the hours of hospital staff have been cut. Let’s shine a light on these problems. We can tell our elected officials about the work that needs doing by snapping a photo and telling the story.

We need to rebuild this economy and the best way to do it is for us to get back to work. There is work that is needed and we have the skills to do that work. What we need is for politicians and greedy CEOs to stop scratching each other’s backs and instead invest in the real “engine of economic growth”--the workers.

No more power poles crashing to the ground. No more bonuses. No more tax cuts. Invest in our bridges, roads and schools. Invest in good jobs.

Bridges to jobs and a Better Future

by Anne Martens

Working Washington holds banners above 520

Holding a banner reading “Build Bridges” in front of the failing Evergreen Point bridge (SR 520), dozens of Working Washington members joined construction workers from the Seattle Building Trades to send a clear and simple message to our elected officials: it’s time to create good jobs by investing in infrastructure.

Our bridge-building event came on the same day as President Obama spoke from a bridge in Ohio to push for the infrastructure investments that are a key part of the American Jobs Act he has proposed to Congress. This would invest an estimated $741 million and create an estimated 9,600 jobs in Washington state alone — jobs that we desperately need, to fix structures that desperately need fixing.

The members of the building trades who joined Working Washington on Thursday represent the men and women who weld the steel, lay the concrete, and do all the other work that builds our roads & bridges and keeps them safe. But because banks and corporations have drastically cut back their investment in making things, construction workers have been especially hard hit by the bad economy. In many trades, unemployment rates have jumped into the double digits, as good jobs that paid enough to raise a family have simply disappeared.

And yet everywhere you turn, you see broken bridges, unsafe roads, and other infrastructure--schools, hospitals, parks and libraries--that are falling apart. In fact, a recent national report shows that there are a staggering 69,000 bridges across the country which have been deemed structurally deficient by the Federal Highway Administration. This includes the SR 520 bridge where we stood yesterday, and hundreds more across Washington State.

The economy isn’t getting any better on its own, and the big banks and corporations aren’t doing much to help. That’s why we need our elected officials to step up and take action to create the good jobs we need.

There’s work to be done. There’s people to do the work. Let’s tell our elected officials to make it happen: get us to work building bridges.