Voices From One Nation

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

Tens of thousands of activists from across the country rallied at the Lincoln Memorial Saturday in the One Nation demonstration. Click here for coverage on the AFL-CIO Now blog. Union City reporters Chris Garlock and Adam Wright collected a sampling of voices -- and snapshots -- from One Nation:

“I’m retired myself, but the people need jobs. Got to get people back to work.”
- Horace Brown (at left), Air Force retiree and NAACP member from San Antonio, Texas

”I teach 8th grade in Sherwood Middle School, and we have no books, no money, and a lot of kids in poverty. Just trying to make a difference here.”
- Willa Jackson (at right), NEA member from Columbus, Ohio

”We’re here for the change we voted for in 2008. A lot of our members are working two and three jobs just to stay afloat, but in this economy that’s getting harder and harder.”
- Doug Collier (at left), SEIU 205 from Nashville, Tennessee

”I was in DC to get my discrimination case extended, connected with the local letter carriers, and stayed an extra week and a half to march; something just told me I had to be here today.”
- Elissa (right, at left), letter carrier from Chicago, Illinois

“I’m out here today to stand up for all my brothers and sisters across America who are struggling to make ends meet. Working people have been suffering at the hands of injustice for far too long and it’s time that we take back what is rightfully ours – a good job, decent healthcare, access to quality education and the right to join a union without interference or intimidation. We are all stronger when we stand together as one nation.”
- Carl, Delta flight attendant from New York, New York

“It’s impossible for our country to move forward without everyone’s commitment and dedication to ensuring that we have good jobs and that we keep those jobs in America.”
- Irma, AFGE member from Minneapolis, Minnesota