Poor People’s Campaign Holds Virtual June 20 Rally

(This article first appeared in the July/August 2020 issue of the American Postal Worker magazine)

On June 20 and 21, the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival held threehour virtual rallies, demanding legislation and policies that address the needs of 140 million low income workers and people. The event, originally planned as a march on Washington, D.C., moved online as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The virtual rally featured dozens of speakers, including union members and leaders, celebrities, activists and politicians. Most of the speakers during the event were ordinary Americans, from urban and rural communities, speaking about the effects of living on low wages and often in poverty, made worse by the public health and economic crisis of COVID-19.

The Poor People’s Campaign was endorsed by the 2018 APWU National Convention. In January, APWU Secretary-Treasurer Liz Powell represented the union at the introductory press conference announcing the plans for the June 20th activities. The event was organized around the release of its policy demands titled the “Poor People’s Moral Justice Jubilee Policy Platform.”

Based on the principle that everyone is deserving of our nation’s abundance, the platform is organized in five parts:

• Establish Justice and End Systemic Racism: The Right to Democracy and Equal Protection Under the Law;
• Promote the General Welfare: The Right to Welfare and an Adequate Standard of Living; Poor People’s Campaign Holds Virtual June 20 Rally Poor People’s Campaign
• Ensure Domestic Tranquility: The Right to Work with Dignity;
• Secure the Blessings of Liberty: The Right to Health and A Healthy Environment;
• Provide for the Common Defense: Reprioritizing our Resources.

“The worst mistake we can make now, with all the marching, the protesting in the streets, would be to demand too little,” said the Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, co-chair of the Poor People’s Campaign with the Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, in his keynote speech during the event.

“Now is the time,” Barber said. “This is the place and we are the people. This isn’t about conservative vs. liberal. That’s too puny. This isn’t about left vs. right. That’s too puny. It’s about life vs. death.”

The full “Poor People’s Moral Justice Jubilee Policy Platform” and video recording of the event are available at june2020.org.

2018-2021 Collective Bargaining Agreement Now Available for Pre-Order

Every member received through the mail in May a printed copy of the 2018- 2021 Collective Bargaining Agreement. The “hard-copy” spiral bound version is now at printers and will soon be available for purchase. They can be preordered on the APWU Store. Go to apwustore.org to place your order.