PORTLAND, Ore.--Workers at Powell's Books, the largest independent bookstore in the country, held a benefit show called "Rock Out to Walk Out" on August 27.
The show was put on to raise money for the strike fund for International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 5, which represents Powell's workers in Portland and Seattle and is entering into contract negotiations with Powell's management in July 2011. The benefit concert was also a celebration of the 10-year anniversary of the local.
It was a large, well-organized event, put on by the rank and file of the union, and consisted largely of a younger crowd. The event featured the creative endeavors of many of the local's own members, including readings from a special issue of "Working Class Stories" in The Ne'er-Do-Well literary magazine, and music by local bands such as DJ Anjali and the Incredible Kid, Bop Out to Walk Out Jazz Quartet, Michael Ford, Nate Ashley, General Strike and Middle Ages.
BUT WHAT really distinguished this event was the vibrant display of working-class consciousness among a predominantly young crowd. A casual passerby probably wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between this young crowd organizing for a potential strike and the multitude that might have come out to a see a show at any other bar or club. But these show-goers weren't just out for the music--they were also out for the cause.
The foresightedness of the local, combined with its youth and energy, brought hope to many attending the event about the future of the labor movement. Daniel Solazzo, with the Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 290, called it "refreshing to see."
"The young people are who's going to take over the reins of the union movement," said Solazzo. "And building in preparation for a contract battle, building events like the 'Rock Out to Walk Out' is what can teach that younger generation how to effectively organize--and this isn't the type of organizing they teach you in school."
http://socialistworker.org/2010/09/07/rock-out-to-walk-out
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