Saturday January 16th was spent honoring members of our own Union, in addition to thousands of working Chicagoans who have furthered the vision of Dr. King’s vision of a society which treats all of its citizens equally, regardless of race or economic status.

President Berg presented the Teamsters Local 743 Martin Luther King, Jr. Award to two members who have worked tirelessly promoting the workers’ movement though struggles in their respective units.

Claudia Francis of Water Saver was the first recipient, and gave an impassioned speech on workers’ rights and commended the new leadership of Local 743 in fighting for all of our members. Claudia made a special point to emphasize that Dr. King fought against all forms of racism. Ms. Francis embodies this message as has been made clear through her courageous fights at Water Saver.

Luis Figueroa of Nina Enterprises was the second recipient of Local 743’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Award. Mr. Figueroa spoke eloquently on the workers’ struggle, and linked the fight of Latino and Latina workers to the African-American struggles of the mid 20th century.

Vice President Davis also spoke.  He drew from Dr. King's famous "Drum Major" speech.  Vice President Davis' message hit home to 743 members by warning us against falling prey to the 'drum major' instinct.  He pointed out that working people's interest lay with other working people, despite what we might hear from corporate fat-cats, whose jobs is to strip us of our money and rights.

After spending the afternoon celebrating our members’ achievements, 743 members packed busses and traveled to the First Baptist Congregation Church. Dr. King himself spoke here while fighting for African-American rights in Chicago in the 1960s. Among the many speakers at the rally were Jesse Jackson, Jr., Congressmen Janet Schakowsky and Luis Gutierrez who have co-sponsored a House bill on immigration reform. Tom Balanoff, of SEIU Local 1 spoke as well as several UFCW members from Pete’s Market who are victims of anti-union discrimination.

Despite a long day of celebration, Local 743 members did not forget our Sisters and Brothers in the midst of current struggles. Dr. King often spoke about the importance of collective bargaining rights, and the labor movement in general. His fateful trip to Memphis was in support of striking sanitation workers. Bringing Dr. King’s idea into 2010, we ended the day by returning to our Union Hall in support of Chicago Packaging, currently in the midst of fighting to keep their jobs after the company relocated.

While the road that Dr. King paved for us is neither easy nor always transparent, Local 743 is committed to making that vision a reality. We encourage all of you to walk that path together in solidarity. It is only by sticking together, that workers will overcome the struggle to build a just society that honors our work, ourselves, and our families.