Thousands march streets of LA for organized labor

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.omaha.com/article/20110327/AP09/303279989

Published Sunday March 27, 2011

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Thousands of union leaders and workers marched through the streets of downtown Los Angeles, vowing and shouting that they would fight for organized labor in California after recent union setbacks in Wisconsin.

Police estimated that between 5,000 and 8,000 people attended the Saturday protest that ended with a rally at Pershing Square.

The Los Angeles Times reports that speakers at the rally included Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa, Maria Elena Durazo from the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, and Fire Fighters of Wisconsin President Mahlon Mitchell.

Mahlon shouted at the rally that the battle in Wisconsin is a "direct attack" on all unions and the entire American middle class.

He warned that similar policies could be instituted in cash-strapped California.

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Information from: Los Angeles Times, http://www.latimes.com