I will try to post more comments after the Holidays, but here are some pics from Decima Musa's Gran Finale... Last Night at Decima Musa

The only way to describe the feeling of receiving news of Decima Musa’s imminent demise was the proverbial punch in the gut. But I quickly relieved myself by convincing myself that the bearer of the bad news had to be mistaken. “Closing on the 15th, you mean just for the holidays” is what I keep telling myself and anyone who dared try to contradict my illusion. It wasn’t until I heard the words directly from Rosario’s mouth that I was forced to face the truth – Pilsen was losing another one of it cultural icons. I’ve told friends that my tearful conversations Rosario over this decision since have been filled with great memories but are harder to endure than most wakes I have attended. It truly feels like the final days of a dear friend. Pilsen has been an immigrant, working class community since its earliest days in the mid-19th century. Because of these demographics it has also been a neighborhood of struggle. Few businesses or institutions in Pilsen during the last 30 years ha

Alvaro and Silvia Tellez have been trying for months to negotiate with the bank that holds the mortgage on their home. They want to renegotiate the terms of their sub-prime mortgage and are willing to keep making regular payments that are within their budget. Over the past year, their monthly payments have jumped from $3,000 to $4,700. The family moved into the basement of their building in order to rent the two floors above in effort to continue making regular monthly mortgage payments. But the bank would rather add one more vacant property to a neighborhood already riddled with them rather than find a way to keep the Tellez family in their home. Alvaro and Silvia followed the legal process and looked for relief from the courts, but were callously told by a judge, after a hearing that took minutes, that they most vacate their property by December 4th. But the Tellez family is taking a stand. With the support of the Chicago Anti-Eviction Committee, the Tellez family announced on Thursd

Join us for PERRO’s 25th Ward Aldermanic Candidates Forum. Find out were the candidates for Alderman of the 25th Ward stand on issues such as the environment, education, TIF funds, gentrification, and social and economic justice. Tuesday, Dec. 7th from 6 to 8 pm at Decima Musa - 1901 S. Loomis. All three candidates have been invited.

PERRO's Day of the Dead Procession was a lot of fun, attracting roughly 100 hundred participants, many of the them students from UIC and Loyola University, as well as our partners from LVEJO, RAN, EcoJustice Collaborative, Sierra Club, Greenpeace and others. We received excellent media coverage on Univision on both the 5 pm and 10 pm news, despite the elections being the next day. 25th Ward Aldermanic candidates Temoc Morfin and Ambrosio Medrano Jr. spoke in favor of the Chicago Clean Power Ordinance. Alderman Solis was a no show. Here are some pictures from the procession from friend of PERRO, Pam Richart... http://www.flickr.com/photos/49938785@N05/sets/72157625218311929/ and... http://www.flickr.com/photos/52853490@N02/sets/72157625171509181/

Chicago IWW hosts MidWest WobFest 2010, November 12th-14th The Chicago IWW is hosting the 2010 Midwest Wobfest at the UE hall on 37 S. Ashland Avenue. All IWWs and other workers are invited. Presentations require a $20 registration fee. Friday night will be a music performance and party that is open to all (no registration required). The show is a $5 sliding scale cover, free with registration. On Saturday, will be the presentations and speakers followed by films and socializing. Sunday is a Labor History tour, including Haymarket Square and a tour of Forest Home, the final resting place of the Haymarket Martyrs. This years presentations will include Occupations and Takeovers, Workers Self-Management, the UE Republic Windows strike & occupation, the Spanish Civil-War, Self-Management in Brazil, and more! Meals will be provided (vegan.) Please let us know if you have any special needs, food allergies, gender preference, need housing or child care. Tabling space is still available! Y

The occupation of La Casita at Whittier was brought to a close tonight. The Whittier parents are declaring victory in the battle of La Casita as Ron Huberman’s office put in writing today the guarantee not to demolish the field house and to lease it to the parents group at $1 a year. However the war is far from over… The issue of the library is yet to be resolved. CPS still insists that they can find space inside the school building for the library. The parents insist there is no space in the school and that the library should be located in the field house. The parents insist that Huberman and Alderman Solis already agreed that TIF funds would be used to complete the repairs necessary at La Casita. Huberman’s letter today did not make this clear. A half block away from Whittier is the abandon police station on Damen which has sat vacant for several years. The parents say that Solis promised them that the build

PERRO (The Pilsen Environmental Rights and Reform Organization) invites all to join their November 1st Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) P rocession through University Village and Pilsen... 4:30 PM - rally at UIC’s Quad 750 S. Halstead 5:30 PM - procession begins into the Pilsen neighborhood, past the Fisk Plant and to Alivio Medical Center. 6:30 PM - rally at Alivio Medical Center - 966 West 21st Street. Will have music, food, art making and a lot of fun. Feel free to come in costume and bring your own sign expressing your concern about the pollution coming from the Fisk coal fired power plant. You can find out more at... pilsenperro.org Here are some pictures from PERRO's Sept. 27th 24 hour vigil outside Alderman Danny Solis office... http://www.flickr.com/photos/54940497@N02/se ts/72157625069804845/show/ And from the 10-10-10 rally at Alivio Medical Center... http://picasaweb.google.com/jerrymeadlucero/101010?feat=directlink

Please, Call Ron Huberman at (773) 553-1550 and fax him at (773) 553-1502 to tell him to accept the parents' demands that were delivered to him on Thursday, October 14th. He has ignored us for too long. Let him know that the Whittier Parent Committee has support throughout the city! It is exactly a month now. Encourage others to do the same.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-k-black/capitalism-would-have-kil_b_764948.html

It was thrilling for me as I am sure it was for all of you to witness the successful rescue of the 33 Chilean miners trapped deep underground for 69 days following a collapse at the San Jose copper and gold mine on August 5 th . Much of the Spanish language press here in Chicago turned over their entire broadcast yesterday to coverage of the rescue. But amidst all the media attention on the “miracle” in Chile , what has not been given as extensive coverage was the host of issues that this near tragedy raises. For one, there are the dangerous working conditions faced by miners world wide and by Latin American miners in particular. Chile is much safer than a place like China were hundreds of miners die ever year, or closer neighbors like Mexico or Colombia, were dozens have died in the last couple years. But the life of a Chilean miner still carries great risk. And by most reports the situation is getting worse. The San Jose mine, owned by Compañia Minera San Esteban Primera,

Here is a link to my article for Labor Notes on the lock-out in Metropolis Illinois... http://www.labornotes.org/2010/09/locked-out-illinois-uranium-processing-plant-steelworkers-and-community-wait-nervously Negotiations between the company and the union resumed Monday, but despite some positive signs Monday, negotiations broke down today. You can read the full report here... http://www.usw7-669.com/mission.html Check back in a couple days for a longer version of my report on my visit to Metropolis on Labor Day.

Here is a link to the pics... http://picasaweb.google.com/jerrymeadlucero/OneNationRallyDCPics #

Last Monday PERRO (Pilsen Environmental Rights and Reform Organization), held a 24 hr vigil outside the office of Alderman Danny Solis of the 25th ward, to encourage him to become a co-sponsor of the Clean Power Ordinance. Dozens of people participated and the news coverage was extensive especially the Spanish language press. Univision covered the vigil on it 5 pm and 10 pm news broadcasts. Telemundo aired pieces on the vigil at 5 pm, 10 pm and on Tuesday mornings news cast. WBBM News radio 780 mentioned the vigil throughout the day Monday. I will post more later, include pictures, put here are two good print stories on the vigil... http://www.progressillinois.com/quick-hits/content/2010/09/27/turning-heat-chicagos-clean-power-bill http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/16182-2

Come out next Friday. We need your support... Labor Beat Fundraiser Evanston Community Media Center 1285 Hartrey Ave. (off Dempster) Evanston, IL For more info go here... http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=150629768304141&ref=ts Labor Beat Fundraiser 6:30 pm, FRIDAY, SEPT. 24 $20 Suggested Donation Evanston Community Media Center 1285 Hartrey Ave. Evanston, Illinois free parking on site! Join us in an evening of: * Short video segments with comments by Labor Beat producers * Refreshments will be served * Discussions on labor and the media issues * Hosted by Jerry Mead-Lucero of the Labor Express radio show For more info on fundraiser: lduncan@igc.org * 312-226-3330

Here are some links related to the 9-20-2010 episode of Labor Express… GET ON THE BUS! Come to D.C. for the One Nation Working Together March on Washington . Find out more here… http://www.onenationworkingtogether.org/content/main For more on the Siege of La Casita, you can check out my blog… http://www.pilsenprole.blogspot.com/ For more on the Chicago Teachers Union’s planned rally tomorrow, check out the CTU’s website… http://www.ctunet.com/ For more on charter school teacher organizing in Chicago , go here… http://www.chicagoacts.org/

Photographer Sarah Jane Rhee was kind enough to send me these pics from the occupation of the Whitter field house which she took last night... http://www.flickr.com/photos/ sierraromeo/5001403178/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/ sierraromeo/5001402250/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/ sierraromeo/5000800179/ The police apparently came by and harassed some of the sit-in participants last night, but they have not attempted to arrest anybody so far.

The Siege of La Casita: The war at Whittier Elementary School is far from over, but at least the most recent battle has been won. The siege of la casita, the field house which sits in Whittier ’s playground, has been lifted. Since Wednesday parents and community activists have occupied the facility to prevent its demolition by Chicago Public Schools (CPS). They want the field house protected and used, at least temporarily, as a library, a resource the school has been left without for years. They currently use the field house as a community center and a place for various activities for the children. They question CPS’s desire to spend over $300,000 on demolishing the structure rather than spend that money ensuring that the school has the resources its needs. The struggle at Whittier is nothing new. For much of the past decade, parents and community allies have had to fight to keep the school open and than fight yet again to make the smallest of improvements in what is

Yesterday’s celebration of Mexico ’s bicentennial of its struggle for independence at Millennium Park was great fun. Not only because the music was great (man that kids choir from Michoacán was really something). Not only because the crowd was so festive. Not only because it was terrific to see so many friends and family I haven’t seen in awhile. But because of the surprise protest targeting the Consul General which took place during the El Grito. It was a huge embarrassment for the Consul who was at the center of yesterday’s festivities. Members of Chicago ’s local Mexican community have long felt that the Consul has been disrespectful towards them, placing greater emphasize on creating a cozy relationship with the powers that be than serving the community’s needs. The protest involved the unfurling of 4 banners at strategic locations letting the Consul know he is no longer welcome in Chicago . Now that’s the way to celebrate a revolution. You can find links to my

This Monday’s episode of Labor Express Radio is a “don’t miss” episode. The entire program will be devoted to my Labor Day weekend visit with the locked out Steelworkers in Metropolis, Illinois, a small blue collar town in the Southernmost corner of the state. Metropolis maybe know as the home of Superman, but the da nger to the residents of Metropolis isn’t kryptonite, it is the toxic substances handled at the Honeywell International Inc. plant located on the outskirts of town. The only uranium conversion plant in the United States, members of Steelworkers Local 7-669 are uniquely skilled and trained to handle radioactive material and highly corrosive acids. But now, locked-out of the plant, the facility is being staffed by poorly trained scabs. There has already been one explosion at the plant on the Sunday before L abor Day. Hear more about how proposed cuts to health care and pension benefits lead to a contract impasse and the eventual lock-out. Hear how the town of 6,000 has ralli

Hi All, Here is a chance for you to have your say on pilsenprole.blogspot.com I am curious to hear peoples thoughts on the announcement of Daley's retirement and the possible candidates for his replacement. Part of this is motivated by my embarrassment that I was unaware that Rahm Emanuel was one of those thinking about running. Somehow I seem to have missed that statement he apparently made to that effect earlier this year. But according to WBEZ this week, you would think he had already won the election. He is almost the only candidate their talking about. They did mention Miguel De Valle and Tom Dart today as well, but they seem ready to declare Rahm the winner before the race has even started. I knew about De Valle before even WBEZ announcement because there is a meeting of Latino activist planned for Saturday and I know they're are discussing promoting De Valle, or perhaps Jesus Garcia, who is already running for county commissioner. What I am surprised by is that

If you haven't already read this, you really must. It is absolutely hilarious as well as poignant, in true Michael Moore fashion. It is really disturbing to think that Rahm Emmanuel could very well be our next Mayor... http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mike-friends-blog/happy-fuckin-labor-day

On the August 23rd episode of Labor Express Radio we discuss the lock-out of Steelworkers at the Honeywell uranium conversion plant in Metropolis Illinois. For more on developments in the lock-out you can check Local 7-669's website... http://usw7-669.com/ We also aired a conversation with Amisha Patel of the Grassroots Collaborative about the history and future of the struggle for living wages in Chicago. For more info on the Collaborative and their upcoming 10th Anniversary fundraiser, checkout their website... http://www.thegrassrootscollaborative.org/

You can hear the story from FSRN here... http://www.fsrn.org/audio/headlines-friday-august-20-2010/7349

Hilton Hotels workers in Chicago voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike at 4 area properties - the Chicago Hilton, Hilton O'Hare, the Palmer House Hilton, and the Drake, according to UNITE HERE Local 1 and Local 450. With 96% of union members voting in favor of a strike, the vote authorizes the rank-and-file bargaining committee to call a strike, if necessary. You can read more here... http://www.unitehere.org/presscenter/release.php?ID=4110

The plans for a strike by clerical workers at UIC has been called off, at least for the time being. It looks as if a negotiations on a new contract are moving forward. Here is a statement issued by Joe Iosbaker, Chief Steward at UIC for SEIU Local 73... As a result of last minute overtures by the University of Illinois president , the officers and elected bargaining committees of SEIU Local 73 at UIC have agreed we will not strike on Monday, August 23rd... We appreciate all the solidarity we have received from students; from our co-workers, especially the Graduate Employees, Nurses, Teamsters , Faculty, and Doctors; and of course, the labor movement and broader community. We will resume Federal Mediation and hope to gain contracts soon, as our members have been without raises and have suffered job losses over the past year without a contract. Of course, should negotiations fail to bring us a fair contract with job security and decent pay, we haven’t given up our right to strike. In

Next Monday, August 23rd, is the first day of classes at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). It will also likely be the first day of a strike by clerical workers at the university, members of SEIU Local 73. You can listen to an mp3 of last Monday's Labor Express Radio program to hear more about some of the issues prompting the workers to strike... http://www.archive.org/details/LaborExpressFor8-16-10 The following is a message from Local 73 member Joe Isobaker... Workers Prepare Strike at UIC--Need Your Support! 2700 union workers, members of SEIU Local 73 at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) are preparing to strike on Monday, August 23rd. They are demanding job security and a fair contract. They need your support. The Network to Fight for Economic Justice (NFEJ) is calling on its affiliates and supporters to show your solidarity. The strike is provoked by UIC’s attempts to undermine the union and by an administration trying to balance the budget o

This week, 22 workers at the Ex-Cell metal products plant in Franklin Park went out on Strike. Despite major contract concessions by the workers in recent years, the company is now demanding that the workers cover 20% of their health care coverage costs. This amounts to over $300 a month from most workers, and the average wage at the plant is $9 an hour. Most workers at the plant have worked there for many years, some more than 20 years. It is a familiar story. A light manufacturing facility employing low wage Latino workers and forcing them to accept poverty wages by threats of plant closings. Hats off to these workers for taking a stand and saying no to further concessions. Tune in to next Monday's episode of Labor Express Radio for more... Labor Express Radio Mondays - 10 AM 88.7 FM or listen live online at... www.wluw.org For archived episodes go to www.laborexpress.org For more pics, go to the following link... http://picasaweb.google.com/jerrymeadlucero/ExCellWorkersOn

Hi All, On today's Labor Express Radio program I reference an article by Mischa Gaus of Labor Notes on the agreement between the Chicago Federation of Labor and Wal-Mart announced in June. You can find the article here... http://www.labornotes.org/2010/07/wal-mart-outmaneuvers-unions-win-approval-chicago-store

On today's episode of Labor Express Radio, we talked about the Pension Rights Center's Retirement USA Speakout and "Wake Up, Washington!" campaign. Here are links for more information about how you can become involved... retirement - usa . org www. pensionrights .org

About 20 or so people this evening attended a "People's Dinner" outside a fundraiser for Alderman Daniel Solis of the 25th Ward. While campaign contributors inside the event paid a minimum of $150 a plate to influence the Alderman, attendees of the free People's Dinner called on the alderman to place the health of residents of the 25th Ward above the influence of corporate donors, including Midwest Generation, which owns and operates the Fisk coal-fired power plant on Cermak. Stay tuned for more news coming very soon that illustrates the depth of the relationship between Solis and Midwest Generation. You can find pictures of the event here... http://picasaweb.google.com/jerrymeadlucero/PeoplesDinner?feat=directlink Here is the press release issued earlier today for the People's Dinner... Pilsen Residents Push Alderman Solis to Stop Coal Soot “People’s Dinner” Held Outside Alderman Solis Fundraiser calling for Ordinance Support CHICAGO, August 2 – Pilsen residen