ILWU members elect worker friendly candidates to office
The ILWU Local 142 would like to extend its deepest gratitude for the tireless efforts of members who canvassed, sign waved, talked with fellow workers and family members, and voted for ILWU-endorsed candidates on Maui, Oahu, the Big Island, and Kauai.
Every effort counted, especially in some tight races. On Oahu, for example, endorsed candidate Kirk Caldwell defeated Charles Djou by only a slim margin (51 percent to 47 percent). ILWU member votes were critical to winning Caldwell a second term as mayor.
Hawaii voted for a Democratic majority in the state legislature and elected the country’s only all-Democrat Senate this year. ILWU members showed that working people can make a positive difference in the outcome of elections by supporting union-endorsed candidates. You have proven how strong the union is by showing up and turning many of the local races in our favor, and the union is proud to have members who care about our communities and vote accordingly. We recognize and commend your commitment and service.
Political action—what now?
As with any journey, we must always begin from where we are. So where are we? On page 2, which includes an election report from The Dispatcher, you will see that despite Hawaii’s favorable election results, much of the national political climate will be antiworker and anti-union. The president elect, the Republican congress, and conservative state legislatures will seek to strip workers of power by weakening unions. Social Security, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act are being threatened, as are environmental, banking, and pharmaceutical regulations. ILWU members need to rally our efforts to show political strength like never before
The union as moral compass
The ILWU’s values have always been straightforward and true – ILWU members want a good living to provide for their family and want to give back to their communities. Our island communities are closely connected, and we know that what goes around comes back around. Members of this union reach their goals because they understand the wisdom and grace of exploring how their actions affect others before acting selfishly for themselves. In a word, this is aloha.
The ILWU belief that “an injury to one is an injury to all” boils down to a philosophy of aloha. Fairness is not about treating just one person right—everyone must be treated equally. Our union practices this idea every time it negotiates strong contracts for all union members, or helps non-union workers organize whether they join the ILWU or not, or fights for legislation that benefits all people in the community.
There will be no aloha in the White House. With the election of Donald Trump, a hateful vision of the world has come into focus. Prejudice and fear has come to the forefront. But those forces always existed, whether in the form of institutionalized racism or corporate greed. It’s up to us— and like-minded others—to keep those forces from winning with our commitment to the belief that aloha can prevail.
PAC year-round: don’t get ready—STAY ready
We cannot afford to sit back and watch with the country leaning sharply toward anti-union positions. The 2016 general election is over, but that doesn’t mean we pack-up our political action program until elections roll around again in 2018. Political action needs to go on all the time. Politics affects us every day because the people who we elect into office make decisions that have a direct impact on us.
—continued on page 8
