Song And Struggle Highlight Council Meeting

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

Delegates at last night’s meeting of the Metro Washington Council were riveted by nurse Geri Lee’s (right) dramatic tale of how Washington Hospital Center management last week disrupted a union meeting in progress, banned the union from holding more meetings at the hospital and stopped nurses – members of National Nurses United – from distributing handbills to visitors about patient care and forbade them from holding a strike vote in their own union office. “The hospital’s blatant union-busting must stop,” Lee told the delegates, urging them to join the nurses at informational pickets beginning on May 6; click here for the full schedule. Other highlights of the Council meeting were a slideshow of 2010 DC Streetheat actions set to a rocking new song from the Dropkick Murphys (watch for details on an online version soon), updates from affiliates (minutes will be posted online later this week) and a rousing conclusion by the DC Labor Chorus, which led the delegates in singing “Hold the fort for we are coming/Union folks, be strong!/Side by side we battle onward/Victory will come!” - Chris Garlock; photo by Adam Wright