Class Warfare

The charge of class warfare has been thrown a few times during the protests, that the middle class is under attack.  It started with the Budget Repair Bill that seeks to restrict the bargaining rights of public unions and increase pensions and health care payments, is an assault on the middle class, as it would reduce their income and ability to bargain in the workplace.  Upon the release of Scott Walker's Budget Repair bill the accusations of class warfare increased.  Education at all levels will see significant reductions, public transportation will be sharply cut, drastically decrease Local Government Aid (LGA) and curtail their ability to raise revenue, would cut Medicaid funding that could force 50,000 off of prescription plans, would relocate the authority for the state Medicaid funding to the state Department of Health which is headed by a man hostile to those programs, and would reduce state tax credits and rebates to the poor.  At the same time he is cutting taxes to corporations and has pledged not to approve any tax increases.

Supporters of Walker use rhetoric like "sharing the burden" to justify this action, that everyone needs to share in the pain of a budget deficit.  I do agree with that idea, but tax cuts to the wealthy and businesses and budget cuts often mean that the middle class and poor bear the burden, while the wealthy's burden is eased.  I don't call that sharing the burden.  In addition to spending cuts, 20,000 some public sector jobs will be lost, plus 1,500 to 6,000 more if Walker carries out his threat if the Senate Democrats don't return soon.  With additional cuts to Medicaid and tax credits and rebates to the poor it will have an adverse effect on the poor and middle class by increasing their expenses and limiting their opportunities through education.

At the same time we are cutting spending, tax cuts are being given to businesses and he has taken tax increases off the table, with the idea that job creation will occur when the tax burden is eased.  Why anyone uses this tactic after it has been proven time and time again to be ineffective is beyond me.  It doesn't work and it reduces revenue which makes the state cut more spending.  It seems to me that when faced with a budget crisis, that no option should be taken off the table and executives should be willing to use a balanced approach of potential tax increases on those who can afford and budget cuts, while protecting essential services.  However, that approach is not being taken, nor considered.  The Governor and state legislatures will most likely continue to seek to cut taxes and slash spending regardless of the impact that it has upon the poor and middle class.

Bus Tour

In Madison Scott Walker Capped off a 3 day bus tour of the state, hitting towns all around the state to promote the Budget Repair bill that ends bargaining rights.  He feels that a silent majority of Wisconsinites support him and are unable or unwilling to Madison to make their voices heard, so he went on the road to see them.  Hitting towns across the state with Joe the Plumber, they drew several hundred at each stop.  Inside were his supporters numbering in the hundreds, rarely exceeding 200, and outside there were an equal and often greater number of counter protesters.  One stop the number of counter protesters was several times the number of supporters.  More people were willing to come out and stand in the cold for hours, than were willing to sit and support him in a heated room.

In Contempt

Yesterday the Senate Republicans voted unanimously to find the Democrats in contempt of the senate if they did return by 4pm that day.  4pm came and passed with no Democrats returning to the senate.  It was at that point that arrests warrants were issued for the fourteen Democratic senators.  Scott Fitzgerald, the senate majority leader, requested that citizens notify the police if they see any of the missing senators.

Is this move constitutional?  Probably not.  Fitzgerald claims that they have the constitutional authority to enforce senate rules and that the Democratic senators are violating the rule requiring attendance.  However the constitution also forbids the arrest of senators during legislative sessions, with the exceptions of treason, felonies, and breach of the peace; none of which the Democrats are accused.

If a Democrat is arrested, it could potentially backfire on the Republicans.  Such a move would get a great deal of media attention, spur a constitutional debate to determine if the Republicans violated the law, and most likely further enhance the support for the Democrats.  Such an act would satisfy the Republican's hard-core supporters and infuriate the Democratic supporters.  The people on the fence would most likely be unhappy with a blatant violation of the law.  It could potentially be PR nightmare for the Republicans.  The Democrats are already hammering home the message that the Republicans only care about winning, are using dirty tactics to do so, and that they don't care about working with the other side.  An arrest in this case would underscore the Democrats message.

Open to the Public, finally

The Capitol is open to the public according to the Wisconsin Constitution.  Only took a judge to order it opened.

Palm Trees in Madison

On the O'Rielly Factor Bill O'Rielly was discussing the Wisconsin protests and how they are violent.  In the background a video showing union members shoving some guy was playing, giving the viewer the impression that this was Madison.  As you watch the video you can clearly see palm trees.  Their are legitimate arguments that it was an honest mistake and not a big, I haven't seen the video in the full context of the episode, so I don't know if it appears to be a mistake or intentional.  Since that video was released protesters have brought inflatable palm trees to the rallies.

The protesters at Madison share a common contempt for Fox News.  It is common to see people bearing signs reading "Fox News Lies" or "Fox News will Lie about This."  Many view Fox News as a propaganda organ for the Republican party.  It was assumed that Fox would distort the protest to fit their agenda and narrative and in general do what they could to dismiss us and make us look bad.

Fox News did not disappoint.  They characterized the protesters as thugs and violent; favored the counter-rally for Walker; blamed the budget short-fall on unions; and had soft-balled Governor Walker in interviews. They also failed to disclose critical information about interviewees; for example:  A concerned mother talking about how bad union are, was also an elected member of the GOP; and a person talking about how unions hurt small businesses, happened to be the CEO of multinational corporation.  I could probably go on hour hours on the way that Fox had mislead or lied about what is going on in Madison.  Here's a long list.

Pundits, such as Glenn Beck, have called us thugs and implied that we are the verge of violence.  Not sure how they maintain that world view when the protests also have children, elderly, and disabled present and in 18 days, there may have only been 1 arrest which wasn't associated with violence (the one arrest was recent and I haven't heard if it was connected to the protest or not).  Recently Fox News jumped over a video of Republican State Senator Glen Grothman being followed outside of the followed outside of the capitol as protesters shout "Shame" and "Fuck You."  This became an example of our violence, even though no violence occurred and the Senator said he could have safely move through the crowd and said he wasn't afraid.  As to why the protesters heckled him is a long  story, lets just say he enjoys insulting the protesters by calling us "slobs."  However, I knew once that occurred that the conservatives and Fox News would jump at "proof" at how violent we were, even if they had to stretch the truth to an extreme degree.

Whenever Fox News anchors get near the protesters, they will begin chanting "Fox News lies" or hold up signs stating the same idea.  Some instances they have attempted to drown out the anchors.  One anchor claimed that he was assaulted, but provided no evidence to support that accusation.  A marshal noted that he saw a few people yelling at the Fox truck as they walked by, not the Fox News personal standing nearby, but the truck.  

The reason why people have vented such much anger and frustration at Fox News is the fact that they have distorted what is occurring in Madison and made us appear to be something which were are not.  However, does it really matter what Fox News says.  Only a small percentage of the TV audience watches cable news, and most of the people who watch Fox probably wouldn't support us anyways.  Fox is just reinforcing their world view.  However, it is fun to make fun of Fox, so I can't blame the protesters for doing it.

Recall

Since the first week of protests, people have been mentioning recalls.  Wisconsin is a state that permits the mechanism of recall on Governors and State Senators.  However they must hold office for a least one year since their last election.  The initial focus was on Governor Scott Walker, however he is not eligible for recall.  Even so people have been collecting pledges to sign a petition once they are able to start collecting signatures, about 8 months from now.  While people are convinced that they can recall him in a year, it is doubtful.  A year is a very long time and great deal can change.  However, as I mentioned state senators can be recalled, and there are eight republicans eligible.

Yesterday the Democratic Party of Wisconsin endorsed recalling state senators and several unions followed their move.  While all eight cannot be recall, three of them appear to be vulnerable.  Petitions are already circulating in their districts and I'm sure that they are identifying candidates to run.  This could have a big impact on Wisconsin.  If at least three republicans are recalled, the balance of power in the senate flips to the Democrats.

The protesters are dedicated to the idea of a recall and will likely push for one against all eligible republicans.  Most of those attempts will likely fail, however if even a few succeed it could impact the balance of power.

Short Sightedness

What are the Republicans in Wisconsin doing?  Do they even know?  You have the assembly republicans whoa week ago conducted a vote, which may have been illegal, which occurred so fast that some democrats sitting at their desk were unable to vote in time.  The senate republicans have attempted to force the democrats home by ending direct deposit and forcing them to get their checks directly from the majority leader, temporarily reassigning democratic staff to republican lawmakers, and fining them everyday that they are gone.  Now they have ordered their arrest.  Even though the Wisconsin Constitution clearly states that they cannot arrest a senator while in session, except under clearly defined exceptions.  And for the past four days the Department of Administration (DOA) has violated the constitution by closing the Capitol and is still defying a court order to open it, by stating that they were already in compliance.  Obviously if a judge orders you to open the capitol, they don't consider what you're doing to be in compliance.  This morning they stated that it will cost millions to repair damage to the capitol caused by tape, which is questionable since they used tape which the building staff stated would not damage the marble; and they also found several rounds of live ammo left by three entrances.  While I will not claim that it is impossible that a protesters was responsible for it, this seems too convenient to them.  The protesters have been completely peaceful with no arrests in 18 days and the police consistently stated how unprecedentedly peaceful the protests have been.

What confuses me is that their actions seem focused on winning just the one particular battle.  However it is very short-sighted and they created long term problems.  Violating the constitution and ignoring court orders will only hurt them.  Shutting their doors to the public, while democrats move their offices outdoors doesn't reflect well.  If the democrats are arrested, it will look bad on the republicans.  In general their behavior has been to ignore the impact that it would have public opinion.  While the democrats on the other hand are responding well to public opinion.  This is crucially because this will not end with the vote on the Budget fix.  Movements are underway to recall Republican senators, and a few may be vulnerable.  I don't that these actions and behaviors will help them and likely it will discourage their base, motivate the democrats, and possible help pull moderates over to the democratic side.  They need to start thinking about the long term, sit down and negotiate, and start respecting the rule of law.  However, I predict they will continue to shoot themselves in the foot.  

Outside Office

For a third day in the row, the capitol doors were shut to the public despite a court order.  Tectonically, they were letting people in.  But it was an extremely small number of people and it took hours to get in; and was not in complacence with the court order.  Hearings were ongoing regarding that issue.  People were frustrated and angry.

Walking around the capitol I found four democratic assembleymen outside with their desks.  They made the decision that if their constituents could not go inside to see them, they would go outside.  They created and spoke with constituents in freezing cold weather.  While this is a theatric event, it does show a stark difference.  No republican has been publicly against the closing of the doors, and few have supported.  The Democrats are showing their support for the people by being outside.  By publicly opposing the closed capitol.  The Republicans are making the Democrats appear to be more sympathetic to the people.

We are Winning...maybe

We are winning.  At least this is the sentiment that many people hold.  The Budget Fix bill has been delayed indefinitely, record setting protests were held, we have gain national attention, the public opinion is on our side, and other republican governors are moderating their stance on similar bills in their states.  In addition, the governor has shut down the capitol in an apparent attempt to silence our voice.  We are winning.

Or are we?  The Governor is turning a deaf ear to us and has ignored our pleas.  We are seeing conservative organizations filling the airwaves with pro-Walker and anti-union ads.  With one exception, the republicans appear to be unified in support of the bill.  The assembly republicans have shown that they are willing to use dirty tactics to pass bills.  And the senate is increasing the penalty on senate democrats to return, by now fining them $100 a day, making them pick up their paycheck, and harassing their staff.

This budget repair bill may very well pass.  However, that doesn't mean we aren't winning, it just means we may lose this battle.  We have seen the democratic party and progressives in general, unite behind this issue.  It isn't just union members, but the entire democratic party and some republicans who are in the fray fighting the bill.  We are gaining momentum which has the potential of taking back the state, and possible spreading beyond.  There will likely be recalls of republican senators, and efforts to sway republicans to defect on key votes.  Grassroots campaigns are already being formed in many districts.  The republicans may be able to dominate the airwaves, but democrats and unions dominate grassroots efforts.  Our strength is in the ground game, going door to door, talking to voters and neighbors.

We will suffer defeats, the state will regress.  Education, welfare, local governments will all suffer.  People will likely lose Medicaid support, it will be more difficult for middle class and poor students to attend college, and many needy people will not have access to necessary resources.  This will be a difficult and unbearable time for many.  However, we will engage the republicans and attempt to stop the most damaging legislation and show enough support in individual districts to force legislatures to consider the constituents before they cast their vote.

We have a potential to come back, in strength.  We are learning a lesson from 2010, to not stay home, that who we vote for matters.  Elections have consequences, which we are witnessing now.

Krampus

I guess Scott Walker has been naughty if these guys want to see him.

Access Denied

Teeming outside of the Capitol building of Wisconsin were thousands of angry citizens.  Early in the morning a judge ruled that it was illegal to keep the capitol closed and they must immediately open the doors.  The Department of Administration (DOA) stated that they would open the doors.  This order was issued in the morning, when I arrived at the capitol around 2pm only handful were getting in, and nearly all of them were entering due to democratic assemblymen who had to come to the door to allow them entry.  This is not the public access that is required.  The DOA blatantly disobeyed the court order and was attempting to delay a court hearing on the injuncture.

People were furious, this was their capitol and they were being denied access.  Most people were frustrated, a few vented their frustration at the police who were enforcing the order.  However, many protesters quickly rose to their defense, reminding them that they were doing their job and that they relationships with them had been great.  However, one group of law enforcement was pulled from the capitol because the Sheriff of Dane County stated his deputies were not "palace guards."

The reason for this denial of entry was obvious, it was the night of the Governor's Budget Address.  By doing so he limited the number of protesters in the capitol.  The rumor mill held that supporters were being brought in through the steam tunnels under the capitol, and those accusations are being investigated.  This further angered people.

As they crowded the door they shouted "Let us in" and  "Whose House?  Our House."  They maintained a presence until it was time for the budget address, at which time the crowd moved to the side of building where the address was being given.  Arriving there they found out that the area closest to the room had been blocked off, an attempt to keep us from being heard during the address.  They under-estimated how loud we could be.  Assembly democrats confirmed that they could hear us in the room.  At one point a democratic staff member opened the window and gestured to the crowd to get louder, which we happily obliged.

Toward the end of the speech the crowd suddenly surged forward into the blocked off areas, the cops moving out of the way to allow it to occur.  I'm unsure if the cops invited the people in or if they just did it; but suddenly the crowd was at the doors chanting and demanding to be let in.  However it was not to be, none of us were allowed in our capitol.

However, we made it known that we cannot and will not be silenced.  If he wants to shut us up, then he needs to come to the table and compromise, as we're willing to do.

Locked Out

At 8 A.M. Monday the capitol was supposed to reopen to the public as required by state law.  However citing public safety concerns the Department of Administration (DOA) kept the doors shut.  Many protesters remained in the building from the day before, though their numbers were dwindling, and the  DOA cited them as part of the reason for not opening the doors.  The problem is that by state law the building must be open during official hours (8am-6pm M-F) and whenever official business was being held.  It was Monday, and it was between 8am - 6pm, and there was official business in the form of hearings, but the doors remained locked.

Gathering outside the doors, around a thousand people gathered, shouting "Let us in!" and demanding to be allowed access.  The ACLU lodged a lawsuit demanding entry, and democratic lawmakers attempted to force the building to be open.  All failed.  Entry was allowed to some, but not to the protesters.  People felt as if their voice was being silenced.  Here they were, citizens and taxpayers of Wisconsin, being denied entry to their statehouse.  During the last two weeks, the occupation of the statehouse had become an important part of the protest to many people.  Now it was being denied to them.

To the Republicans this was likely a welcome change.  They made no secret of their disgust at the occupation and their desire to remove the "slobs" who filled the hallways making noise.  This removal of the protesters comes right before the Governor has his session to release his budget bill.  Certainly he desired to clear the capitol of his critics before he gave his speech.  All statements for the DOA indicate that they intend on limiting access to the capitol tomorrow as well, most likely to keep the protesters at arms length and maintaining peace and quiet at the capitol.

However the unions and their supporters have no intention on remaining quiet or away.  They stood out side in large numbers until late tonight, making their presence heard.  They intend on returning tomorrow, likely with a much larger crowd, to make sure that the Governor can hear us during his budget address.

Union Thug

Here is one of the many union thugs threating violence at the capitol.

Union Thugs

So after 14 days of protests, with hundreds of thousands of people picketting and occupying the capitol building, the police have made zero arrests and a handful of citations.  We have been accused of being thugs, violent, and Republicans claim that they avoid the capitol out of fear of safety.  The Senate Majority leader has claimed that it is not safe for staff to move around the capitol, thus requiring that the protesters be removed.  Staff appear either intrigue by the going ons or annoyed at having to navigate congested hallways, but none appear uneasy or afraid.  After all of those claims the police have felt no need to arrest anyone and in fact have a friendly relationship with the protesters.  They speak highly of the behavior of the protesters and vis versa.  One can only assume that those who claim that Madison is on the verge of violence are observing a completely different protest than the one that is occurring in Wisconsin.

Signs of our time

As plans were being drawn to evacuate the capitol, many feared what would happen to the many signs that dotted the capitol. Throughout the capitol, protesters tapped their signs to the wall. These were unique signs that expressed their desires, intentions, and creativity. It was fascinating walking through the building reading the signs and appreciating the art to them.

The marshals assumed that the janitors would most likely through those signs away when they were cleaning. We were trying to figure out if we should encourage people to take them down as they left or if we should help gather them up. Word was then passed down to us that the Smithsonian in Washington requested that the Wisconsin Historical Society collect all of the signs to be preserved for posterity. They recognized that no matter the outcome of this movement, that those signs were part of a historical event and need to preserved.

Whose house? OUR HOUSE!

The occupation of the capitol has ended...or is supposed to end. Since Feb 16th, the protesters have maintained a continuous presence at the capitol. They had a day care, first aid station, drum circle, yoga classes, and established a community. On Sunday, it was scheduled to end at 4 p.m.

The pretense for the removal was to clean the capitol. While the protesters cleaned up after themselves and mopped he floors on their own accord, it was still dirty and possessed a lovely aroma. While this needed to be done, it was clear that they wanted to remove the protesters from the capitol and restore normalcy.

Working alongside the marshals, we sought to encourage a peaceful and orderly exit. Not everyone was going to leave and we knew it. We established an area for those who were willing to risk arrest to gather. We encouraged this to maintain order and to maintain solidarity. The number of people who decide to stay was around 600 protesters. They were all willing to risk being arrested. However, speaking to several police officers, it was clear that most had no intention of arresting anyone and it was clear that more than a few would have disobeyed an order to arrest the protesters or forcibly remove them. As the situation became tense and the protesters were separated between those who stayed and those who left, I noticed an officer sitting on the bench. Watching him, I noticed that he was wiping tears off his eyes. He was moved to tears by the situation. While they may not support the cause that the people were fighting for, they had nothing against them and appreciated their behavior non-violence.

As we were moving people out the situation became tense. Only one entrance was opened for people to exit. At one of the main set of doors that was locked, people gathered on the other side demanding to be allowed in. Protesters gathered on the inside and began chanting "let them in!" However, they eventually marched off to another part of the capitol. At the only exit so many people gathered outside that the police feared that they would attempt to rush the people. This caused many people who wanted to leave to be trapped in as the police tried to figure out how to get people out. Eventually, everyone who wanted to exit were able to get out.

Initially, the plan was to remove or arrest anyone who did not voluntarily leave. However, after negotiation with the police, the protesters agreed to move to one floor so that the rest of the building could be cleaned. Nearly all of the occupants agreed, except for several dozen people who stayed on the ground floor. I'm not sure why they refused to move. But they gathered on the floor refusing to move. People on the floor above shouted at them to join them and "strength in numbers." They were informed that if they did not move to the designated floor that they would be arrested. Only a handful of them moved. They were willing to risk arrested than move from their spot.

By 9 p.m. Sunday night, it was confirmed that the police were not going to remove any of the protesters or arrest them. No one had been arrested. They worked with them to bring them food and make sure they stayed out of the way of the cleaners. The police seem to be walking a tight rope between doing their job, and allowing the protesters a safe atmosphere to exercise their first amendment right to the extent they have bended and ignored rules.

While the occupation of the Capitol was initially scheduled to end today, it appears that it will survive to another day.

Day 13

A cold, snowy day in Madison started off the day which organizers hoped would be the largest protest march in Wisconsin history. The previous record was set one week prior. First thing in the morning rumors were abounding that the buses would bring in people from all over the state were having to leave the people behind because they didn't have enough space. Hours before the rally began we were already at numbers equal to the previous rally. Marching through the snow and cold people young, elderly, disabled stood up for their rights.

Two weeks into the struggle, threats of lay offs and delays of medicaid payments, have failed to deter the protesters. Not only were they not frightened, they were emboldened. They saw the threats for what they were and came out in greater numbers. The crowds were likely around 100,000. At the same time tens of thousands of people gathered in cities across the country, including Topeka, Kan., Los Angeles and Portland, Maine, to stand in solidarity with Wisconsin.

Entering the day, I assumed that tensions would be higher. People would be scared or nervous due to the governor's threats, but instead people were happy. They exerted confidence, humor, and joy that showed that they believed they would win. In the matter of two weeks they exerted a show of strength that seemed impossible before hand. As the minority party in government the Democrats delayed a process that seem inevitable to result in a defeat and the opponents of the bill staged the largest protests in Wisconsin history, surprising even the Vietnam War protests.

As this day ends we feel strong. While we are aware that the governor won't cave, he has painted himself in a corner with his rhetoric and he know he would never do anything that indicts that he was wrong. However, we hope that the senators will listen. They will realize that if they don't know listen to the people they will suffer when the next election cycle comes. We have hope that we will win, but are pragmatic and know that nothing is certain. Whether we win or lose, we have shown that we are united, powerful and will fight for what is right.

Union Bride

They get married, then march in a protest.

Shame! Shame!

Early on Friday morning, the assembly entered the 61st hour of continuous floor debate on the Budget Fix bill. The assembly democrats had more than a hundred amendments they offered. Suddenly before most knew what was happening a roll call vote occurred, leaving 25 democrats unaware of the vote. This led to the democrats standing up and shouting "shame!"

This both disappointed and excited the labor movement. A vote was lost, to unseemly tactics, and were one step closer to the bill passing, any hope of the current bill being amendment was lost. However, Governor Scott Walker expected the bill to have been signed as of Friday the 18th. A week later the bill just passed one house of the legislature. In the meantime, the assembly Democrats had excited the protesters through their stubborn stance in spite of the inevitable defeat. Assembly Democrats stood up, represented the will of those they represented and pushed hard to slow down the bill.

End of the Occupation

So the long occupation of the capitol is coming to an end.  Police have announced that they orders to remove protesters immediately, though they will do so by 4pm on Sunday and that no one will be able to sleep over again.  The immediately response is one of defiance.  People don't want to give that space up, not until we defeat the bill.  Many have indicated that they will non-violently resist.  Previously when there have been rumors that they were going to clear out the capitol the unions send large contingents of numbers.  Tonight when this news broke, about a thousand people were in the capitol.  Rumors are out that off duty police will be coming to join the protesters in the camp out in the capitol.  However, it is yet to be seen if the Capitol Police are ordered to forcibly remove the protesters if they actually well.  The police and protesters have a positive relationship.  They have been peaceful and considerate of the law enforcement officers.  Most likely the only major complement most will have of the protests is that they have to work longer hours than they usually do.

I know for myself that the end of this occupation will be loss.  Not a set back for the movement, a cultural lose for the protest.  College students, teachers, nurses, firefighters, and iron workers have come and lived together under the capitol dome.  They developed such a unique community and society that cannot be replicated.

The Whole World is Watching

A common sign and statement uttered by protesters outside Madison is that the whole world is watching. It can easily be assumed that people have an overinflated view of themselves and their movement. Why would the care about some state they probably never heard of when they have issues in their own countries and major protests, rebellions, and upheavals occurring in many Middle East states.

However, several organizations in foreign countries have written personal messages of support to the Labor Movement in Wisconsin. Solidarity of Poland, the party which helped end the communist government wrote a letter of solidarity; one of the leaders of the Tahrir Square protests in Egypt sent a personal message of support and other movements have indicated their support. The BBC and the Guardian have placed Wisconsin as headline news more than once. In addition, it is the massive donations of food, in the way of pizza grams from numerous countries, that have caught people's attention.

Protesters believe that the reason for the attention is due to the movements toward democracy in the Middle East. Countries are trying to increase their freedom and break from dictatorial rule. Then in America they see elected leaders rolling back on rights, which to some are seen as fundamental. Worker rights are included in the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights. We believe that those countries and their citizens are worried about what it means if America, long a symbol of democracy, attacks and eliminates rights which are held as fundamental.

Whatever reason for that support, people are the ground feel empowered. They feel that they have the support of the world, that they are watching us and rooting for us. It makes our effort seem bigger and more important then it may be, but it encourages us.

Solidarity

Across the country moveon.org is having rallies in support of Wisconsin. If you have time I encourage everyone to go and stand in Solidarity with Wisconsin.

Coast to Coast Solidarity

Twelve hours a day Joanie was watching television coverage of the Pro-Labor rallies in Madison, Wis. from her home in San Fransisco. She felt compassion and sense of solidarity with the protesters. One day she hops a flight to Madison and camps out in the Capitol building besides hundreds of others. She could no longer just sit at home and watch events unfold, she wanted to be there where the action was and help the labor movement defend its values.

While the vast majority of those protesting are Wisconsinites, there are a minority who represent states across the U.S. who come to show solidarity. A group of 500 hundred teachers flew in from L.A., union members drive up from Chicago and the Twin Cities, and people representing Massachusetts, Nevada, Iowa, Washington State have marched and protested with those from Wisconsin. I have heard a story about a state representative from Maine hopping in her car to drive to Madison, accumulating donations of food along the way.


What has driven some to travel so far is the belief in the movement for labor. That we must stand and defend union rights in Wisconsin or similar bills will be passed in numerous other states. The massive show of force and the courageous actions of the democratic legislatures has lead many to believe that we can win if we remain strong and united. By standing there in Madison they feel that are part of history while it unfolds and that they are helping us win.

Hostage Crisis

Lay off notices are being sent to government employees and people in nursing homes may not receive payments from the state. Why? Because Scott Walker isn't getting his way. Political disagreements occur and don't need to get ugly. So why is our governor more willing to hurt citizens and elderly of this state than to sit down and negotiate with the unions. It seems like he is so determined to get his way that it doesn't matter who gets hurt.

We feel as if he is threatening us, "do what I want or I'll off a hostage" is the message, which we're getting. However, the hostages are government workers and elderly in nursing homes. The sad thing is the concessions have been offered, the unions are willing to take cuts. It is Scott Walker who refuses. He is so determined to bust unions that he appears willing to do anything.

I do feel a sense of uncertainty, that we may be risking too much. That this man will not back, will not admit he was wrong, and will not accept any compromise. However, if we don't than he will most likely lay off workers, and this bill opens up the way to gut Medicaid programs. The worse part is he doesn't need to any of this. He has the ability to balance the budget and end this. He just has to agree not to restrict bargaining rights. This must end and we must protect workers and the vulnerable of this state.

This is a peaceful protest

During a prank call by the Buffalo Beast, a blogger out of Buffalo, NY, Governor Scott Walker indicated that he had considered and not acted on the idea of putting troublemakers among the protesters to cause problems.  This indicates that he was going to consider disrupting the peaceful protests with potential violence.  Maybe he didn't mean it that way, but many believe that his what he means.

What is deeply troubling to many is that there are many babies, infants, and children at the protests.  Were violence to occur, they would likely be hurt.  A former teacher expressed his disgust over Walker stating that the other day he brought his two young children with him.  Others are unhappy as they worked hard to ensure that this is a peaceful protest.  Many protesters bear signs declaring "This is a peaceful protests", and volunteer Marshals are present ensuring that problems are defused.  The Madison Chief of Police demanded that Walker explain his comment, as he and his officers have worked hard to ensure that democracy is able to be exercised in safety.

However, if that was considered, is the Governor afraid of this protests?  Does he feel that he needs to discredit the movement to win?  If that is the case, then it reveals the weakness of his side.

The Fab 14

Signs and buttons inside and outside of the Wisconsin Capitol, proclaim people's love for the Wisconsin 14 or the Fab 14. The WI 14 are the 14 democratic senators of Wisconsin who have been heroes to the protesters and the union supporters. On Thursday morning of the 17th, the Senate was convening to begin discussion on the budget fix bill. Its passing was a forgone conclusion. The Republicans held the senate with a 19-14 margin and were pushing it through at high speed. The Republicans noticed that 14 members of the senate were missing. The Sergeant of Arms was dispatched to retrieve them so they could begin. The search was hampered by hundreds of students preforming a sit-in, making it extremely difficult for him to get to the offices. Once there he could not account for any of the democrats. As time went on it was discovered that they were in Illinois. There absence prevented a quorum and by senate rules they need 3/5 majorities to pass fiscal bills. Their absence makes them 1 vote short of a quorum.

Since then Governor Walker and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald have claimed that they are preventing democracy from occurring and they were acting unethically. To some this is wrong, they have delayed the process by leaving and preventing a quorum. Others see them as obstructing democracy and ignoring their duty to the voters and taxpayers. They want them to return to have a yes or no vote on the bill and move on.

To the unions and the protesters this was an act of political courage. They become the heroes the hour. Recently, many have seen the democrats as being spineless, afraid to make a stand that may be politically dangerous. Often we have been left down by elected leaders, who look at the political winds before acting. However, they took a bold act, that took courage and conviction. Whatever their faults may be, they saw the massive crowds and opposition toward bill and most have recognized that would have support if they acted to block the bill. So they used the most effective tool in their disposal and that was leaving the state of Wisconsin and went to Illinois.


Walking through the protesters there are signs that state "We love the WI 14" or "Fab 14" and other signs indicting their support for them. Since then, Senators Erpenbach and Miller have made calls, made appearance on news shows to state why they left and have given calls to supporters to encourage them.


Most likely it was the actions and courage of those senators that embolden Indiana House Democrats to leave their state when a similar bill was proposed. There action was one of many that has help grow the movement and show that the unions and labor will fight back and will not meekly accept an erosion of their rights.