Belabored Podcast #122: Immigrants Strike Back at the White House

Following last week’s Day Without Immigrants, organizers share their insights about how to fight Trump at work and in the streets.

Day Without Latinos, Immigrants and Refugees march in Milwaukee, WI (Susan Ruggles / Flickr)

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President Trump wants to strike fear into immigrant communities, but with or without papers, immigrants are standing their ground. Following a spate of terrorizing deportation raids across the country, activists rose up and launched a Day without Immigrants—a spontaneous, decentralized wave of strikes and demonstrations, to show both what’s at stake in the fight for immigrant rights under Trump, and to demonstrate the massive economic power that migrant workers wield. We spoke with German Sanchez and Christine Neumann-Ortiz of Voces De La Frontera in Wisconsin, Pablo Alvarado of National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) in Los Angeles, and Basma Eid of Enlace’s Worker Center Federation in New York after the protests to get their insights about organizing strategies at work and in the streets under Trump.

In other news, we look at the new nominee for Labor Secretary and the role of whistleblowers in federal science agencies, examine the epidemic of gender discrimination and sexual harassment in Big Tech and follow a rising union movement challenging Big Banks. With recommended reading on deportees working tech support and abortion laws imposing forced labor.

If you think our work is worth supporting as we soldier on through Trumplandia, please consider becoming a sustaining member of Belabored or donating or subscribing to Dissent. Please help keep us going for the next 122 episodes!

News

Tech Still Doesn’t Take Discrimination Seriously (Wired)

Reflecting On One Very, Very Strange Year At Uber (Susan J. Fowler)

Trump’s Labor Pick Has a History of Attacking Voting Rights (The Nation)

The Scandal That May Haunt the New Nominee for Labor Secretary (The Atlantic)

‘Draconian’ Trump gag on scientists could affect legislation, experts warn (Guardian)

Political Screening of Science Backfires as Scientific Integrity Policies Dangle (PEER)

Bank workers will protest to form their first US union — and the whole world is watching (Mic)

Conversation: Day Without Immigrants Protests

German Sanchez, Christine Neumann-Ortiz of Voces de la Frontera

Pablo Alvarado of National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON)

Basma Eid of Enlace’s New York Worker Center Federation