Smithfield Workers Take Battle to Streets of Williamsburg

The quaint, quiet streets of historic Williamsburg, VA reverberated with noisy chants of "Hey, hey, ho, ho, unionbusting has got to go!" on Wednesday as hundreds of workers, clergy, and activists - including a busload from the Metro DC area - protested Smithfield's unionbusting tactics outside the company's shareholder meeting. After debarking buses and a quick lunch, participants packed the pews and aisles of the First Baptist Church of Williamsburg for a pre-march rally. "Is it moral to treat workers like animals?" asked UFCW Local 400 President James Lowthers. "Is it moral to deprive children of food and healthcare? No!" Carlos Jimenez, Student Labor Action Project National Coordinator and a member of the DC delegation, reminded the crowd that "Martin Luther King once said that an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. I want to thank the (Smithfield) workers for standing up and showing courage. This is not just your fight but our fight as well." North Carolina State NAACP President Rev. Dr. William Barber II revealed that Smithfield had tried to "buy off" the Fayetteville NAACP chapter with a $1,000 contribution. "They sent the check back," Barber said, to cheers from the crowd. "We don't want pork money, we want people to be treated decently. Twelve years is long enough." Smithfield worker Vanessa Reeves recounted how, after a hog fell on her and caused her to miscarry, Smithfield fired her for not calling in. "Last week, once again, the rights' of workers were stepped on by immigrant authorities," reported Gabriel Rivera-Lopez, another Smithfield worker. "This situation not only affects Latino communities but all communities." Members of the DC Labor Chorus sent the fired-up activists out into the streets with a performance of "Solidarity Forever.” The large and spirited crowd marched past tourists, chanting and blowing whistles. After a brief stop to rally in front of an unfinished Smithfield store, the marchers wound up outside the Smithfield shareholder meeting in solidarity with worker representatives who were meeting inside with company officials. The Smithfield representatives "are scared of us" reported Rev. Dr. Luther Holland National Treasurer of the Ministers for Racial, Social and Economic Justice after the meeting. "We stood before the board and reminded them why we are in this fight: to get workers the right to organize." Workers have rejected a company offer to hold another secret ballot union election because of Smithfield's record of intimidation and harassment during previous elections, vowing to continue the fight until the company agrees to card check recognition.
-Report/photos by Andy Richards