Our Life & Times

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EDITORIAL

Contents 3 4 5 15

Leon Davis, the father of 1199, leading a picket line during a 1941 strike against the Whalen Drug Stores Corporation.

WE STAND ON THEIR SHOULDERS Saluting a half-century of pioneers. PRESIDENT’S COLUMN In the spirit of our pioneers. 50 WHO CARRIED THE 1199 TORCH Profiles of our pioneers. AROUND OUR UNION

OUR PIONEERS 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25.

Norma Amsterdam Gloria Arana Eddie Ayash Mattie Best Ezra Birnbaum John Black Thelma Bowles Arnetta Campbell Maria Castaneda Linda Chan Carrie Davis Ossie Davis Ruby Dee Marshall Dubin Gloria Duso Ann Flack Moe Foner Aida Garcia Marshall Garcia Elliott Godoff Frank Goes Wilhelmina Goss George Gresham Leaza Halloway Annie Henry

26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50.

Gerry Hudson Joe James Hilda Joquin Carole Joyner Phil Kamenkowitz Eddie Kay Deborah King Steve Kramer Ramon Malave Ruth Massey Bernie Minter Theodore Mitchell Mary Moultrie Henry Nicholas Mike O’Brien Jesse Olson Julio Pagan John Perkins Norman Rayford Robin Ringwood Dennis Rivera William Taylor Doris Turner Celia Wcislo Leon Davis

Our Life And Times, December 2009, Vol 27, No 5 Published by 1199SEIU, United Healthcare Workers East 310 West 43rd St. New York, NY 10036 Telephone (212) 582-1890 www.1199seiu.org

E DITOR : J.J. Johnson STAFF WRITE R : Patricia Kenney PHOTOG RAPH E R :

Jim Tynan PHOTOG RAPHY ASS ISTANT :

Belinda Gallegos ART DI RECTION & DES IG N :

PRES I DE NT :

Maiarelli Studio

George Gresham S EC RETARY TREASURE R :

Maria Castaneda EXEC UTIVE VIC E PRES I DE NTS :

Norma Amsterdam Yvonne Armstrong Angela Doyle Mike Fadel Aida Garcia George Kennedy Steve Kramer Patrick Lindsay Joyce Neil John Reid Bruce Richard Mike Rifkin Neva Shillingford Milly Silva Estela Vazquez

Our Life And Times is published 6 times a year by 1199SEIU, 310 West 43rd St., New York, NY 10036. Subscriptions $15 per year. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and additional mailing offices. ISSN 1080-3089. USPS 000-392. Postmaster: Send address changes to Our Life And Times, 310 West 43rd St., New York, NY 10036.

We Stand on Their Shoulders Thousands of homecare workers demanded a living wage at June 2004 march and rally in New York City

For the past year, this journal has chronicled the path that our Union has traveled over the past half-century. It is a path that has transformed a 5,000-member Union into the world’s largest local, with 350,000 members in four states and the District of Columbia The march was begun by a small pharmacy union that defied the most powerful interests in New York City. These pioneers 1199ers took on what most called an impossible task – the organizing of New York City’s poor, exploited voluntary hospital workers. Unity was the essential ingredient in1199’s recipe for success. But that unity could not have been forged and sustained without sharp vision and individual acts of courage and sacrifice. This issue celebrates 50 of those leaders whose courage, commitment and leadership have been central to our accomplishments. Many of the 50 are obvious choices – names that have become legend within our Union and the broader labor movement. For example, Leon Davis, the father of our Union, has long secured an honored place in U.S. labor history. Others are less well known. Many never joined the Union staff. Instead they built the Union at their institutions and in some instances won unprecedented gains. Some were with us for only a short time. Norman Rayford was killed by a security guard at age 34 while organizing Philadelphia hospital workers. Of course, because the list is limited, many deserving 1199ers have been excluded. To acknowledge those leaders, the 1199SEIU website will establish a section dedicated to the 50 pioneers profiled in this magazine together with other past Union activists who periodically will be added to the section. Our website also will inaugurate early next year a Member of the Month section to honor outstanding current members. Please log onto www.1199SEIU.org for details. Our 1199SEIU new members’ brochure is entitled “Proud of Our Union.” We are especially proud of the 50 pioneers profiled in the pages of this magazine.

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December • Our Life And Times

We salute a half-century of pioneers.

The 1199SEIU audited financial statement for the year ending Dec. 31, 2008 will be included in the next issue of Our Life And Times


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