WRFG Labor Forum

A core group of organized inmates have issued a call for a national prison strike from Aug. 21 to Sept. 9.

August 21 is the anniversary of the assassination of Black Panther Party Field Marshal and prison activist George Jackson in 1971. September 9 is the anniversary of the Attica Prison Rebellion, which erupted two weeks after Jackson’s assassination.

Prison strike demands and support:

1. Immediate improvements to the conditions of prisons and prison policies that recognize the humanity of imprisoned men and women.
2. An immediate end to prison slavery. All persons imprisoned in any place of detention under U.S. jurisdiction must be paid the prevailing wage in their state or territory for their labor.
3. The Prison Litigation Reform Act must be rescinded, allowing imprisoned humans a proper channel to address grievances and violations of their rights.
4. The Truth in Sentencing Act and the Sentencing Reform Act must be rescinded so that imprisoned humans have a possibility of rehabilitation and parole. No human shall be sentenced to Death by Incarceration or serve any sentence without the possibility of parole.
5. An immediate end to the racial overcharging, over-sentencing, and parole denials of Black and Brown humans. Black humans shall no longer be denied parole because the victim of the crime was white, which is a particular problem in Southern states.
6. An immediate end to racist gang enhancement laws targeting Black and Brown humans.
7. No imprisoned human shall be denied access to rehabilitation programs at their place of detention because of their label as a violent offender.
8. State prisons must be funded specific­ally to offer more rehabilitation services.
9. Pell grants must be reinstated in all U.S. states and territories.
10. The voting rights of all confined citizens serving prison sentences, pre-trial detainees, and so-called “ex-felons” must be counted. Representation is demanded. All voices count!

Inmates ask for solidarity through various actions, such as contacting relevant “local, state and federal political representatives” about their demands, especially that prisoner votes be counted.

They ask that financial boycotts of services to prisoners be based only on the stated wishes of those inside.

Later this month, WRFG 89.3FM will mark its 45th anniversary of serving Atlanta with progressive news, analysis and discussion along with the most varied selection of hand-picked music reflecting a wide cultural expression.

Every program is staffed by volunteers who are passionate about being part of a community radio station.

WRFG is not owned by a profit-making corporation, bent on selling our audience products you neither need or want.
We are sustained by our listeners and others who support independent media.

Our summer pledge drive begins today, July 9 and will continue until Sunday, July 29. We need to raise $60,000 to meet the monthly expenses for July, August and September.

If you value The Labor Forum program, especially if you have been a guest on the show, we hope that you can donate any amount to ensure that working people will continue to be able to use 89.3FM’s air waves to speak about the issues important to them.

You can certainly call 404.523.8989 any time to make a contribution but we would especially ask that you call while The Labor Forum is on air, every Monday from 4-5pm.

Other options are using the DONATE button on the website, wrfg.org; sending a check to WRFG, 1083 Austin Ave NE, Atlanta 30307; using our mobile app or coming by the station/studio personally.

You are our listeners, our guests on The Labor Forum and our financial supporters.

PLEASE DONATE TODAY!

Troy Walcott, IBEW Local #3 steward and Spectrum striker calls into The Labor Forum to talk about 15 month long struggle by 1800 NYC union members to win a contract with the communications giant, their new corporate boss since May 2016.
Formerly employed by Time-Warner Cable, these workers are fighting the increasing monopolization of the industry that brings decreased pay and benefits to those who do the work and higher bills and lower service to customers.
Tune in at 4:15-4:30 to learn about this important strike.

This past Saturday, hundreds of thousands of people marched in some 700 US cities, protesting the repressive and cruel immigration policies of the Trump administration.
At 4:30, The Labor Forum welcomes Lovette Kargo-Thompson, Atlanta leader of BAJI (Black Alliance for Just Immigration) to our WRFG studio to discuss the harmful impact of these decisions on African and Caribbean refugees and immigrants in particular.
She will cover how ending TPS (Temporary Protective Status) for Haitians and others will force tens of thousands back to countries still recovering from natural disasters and internal violence.

The Labor Forum airs every Monday from 4-5pm on Atlanta’s progressive, community radio station, WRFG 89.3FM. The programs are archived at wrfglaborforum.org.

The station’s summer pledge drive begins July 9. Contributions from listeners are the primary source of funds needed to operate WRFG’s 24 hour a day, seven days a week schedule of hand-picked music and public affairs programming.

Please make your DONATION online at wrfg.org or WRFG App on your phones, or by calling the studio at 404.523.8989 or mailing a check to 1083 Austin Ave NE, Atlanta 30307.

You can show your support for The Labor Forum by attributing your contribution to our program.

Thank you.

WRFG Labor Forum Team

Order your ticket here

Darrell Lane, President of Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers Union Local #42 brings
the latest news of the ongoing struggle with Mondelez (formerly Kraft) both locally and nationally.
The corporation infamously closed the Chicago plant that produced Oreo cookies and moved production
to a low-wage facility in Mexico that ships the product back to the US.
Darrell will speak about the contract negotiation issues facing the Atlanta workforce.
This interview will be from 4:30-4:55 on The Labor Forum on WRFG 89.3FM.

Earlier in the program, we will review two events that took place this past week-end that figure in the
establishment and growth of WRFG 89.3FM as an independent, progressive community radio station.

In 1968, the Great Speckled Bird, an underground newspaper, was founded by a group of young activists to
provide news and information to and about the rising social, cultural and political movements of the time.
The development of a mission-based, community sponsored and supported radio station was bolstered by
the Great Speckled Bird and other grassroots organizations and so WRFG 89.3FM was born in 1973.
A 50th Bird anniversary event was held on Saturday, June 2 with featured speaker, Amy Goodman of Democracy Now
whose program is aired on WRFG weekdays from 5-6pm.

Poet, political activist, organizer, founder of multiple community institutions and long-time WRFG Board member and
Program Director, Ebon Dooley, was honored at the Auburn Ave Research Library on Sunday where his extensive
collection of papers, books, documents, writings and more are archived.
We will share some of the moments of that event.

The Labor Forum airs every Monday from 4-5pm on WRFG 89.3FM. For additional information, please see wrfglaborforum.org

The Labor Forum on WRFG 89.3FM welcomes two guests to today’s program.

From 4:15-4:30, Sara Patenaude an activist with Hate Free Decatur, will describe the latest
developments in the campaign to remove the confederate monument from Decatur Square.
The group is mobilizing for a Tuesday County Commission meeting to press elected officials to
carry out the actions approved months ago to take the white supremacist symbol off the public square.

At 4:30, Labor Forum listeners will hear from Robert Griswald, a student at the New School in NYC, who is one
of many students who have occupied the college’s cafeteria since May 1. The school has a reputation for being
a progressive institution but the administration fired 45 cafeteria workers in order to bring in a subcontractor,
paying lower wages.

The Labor Forum applauds the role these students are playing in defense of the workers’ rights to keep their jobs.

Please tune in every Monday from 4-5pm at WRFG 89.3FM to hear about the struggles affecting working people
and their families from those taking active participation and leadership in the fight.

For more information, see wrfglaborforum.org

The Labor Forum on WRFG 89.3FM sends solidarity greetings to our listeners and supporters on the eve of International Workers Day, May 1st.

We hope that our weekly one hour program every Monday from 4-5pm provides news coverage and analysis of issues and struggles impacting working people, their families and communities in way that educates, inspires and mobilizes for worker power.

Our first guest from 4:15-4:30 is Deborah Arnold, a member of the Housing Justice League, who will pass on information about nationwide protests opposing HUD budget cuts to affordable housing programs. These actions are taking place tomorrow, May 1, including here in Atlanta at Senator David Perdue’s office in Buckhead.
Following on the heels of the housing foreclosure crisis which saw thousands of people lose their homes to fraudulent and unethical banking and mortgage practices, Atlantans now face escalating rents, exorbitant home sales prices and aggressive development projects in inner city neighborhoods that are displacing communities of color, seniors and low-wage workers.

Please tune in to hear about the work of the Housing Justice League at 4:15.

Next, a parent of two children attending DeKalb County schools will discuss why the demands of the DeKalb bus drivers should be met.
Hannah Hawkins is a community supporter of the workers who participated in a “sick-out” to draw attention to their lack of a living wage and a pension for their years of service as well as issues regarding the condition and safety of the school buses.
Across the country, teachers and other education workers including bus drivers, maintenance and cafeteria workers, have taken bold measures to bring the reality of underfunded public education to the country’s attention.
This interview will be heard from 4:30-4:55.

For more information about The Labor Forum including the archive of past programs, please see wrfglaborforum.org