Reflections : 2017 CUPE National Convention

The 2017 CUPE National Convention took place in Toronto, October 2-6. Every 2 years CUPE members from across Canada gather to set the course of the national union for the next two years. Prior to the opening of convention, each sector meets for a couple of hours to get caught up with the goings on across the country. 

As co-chair of the CUPE National Library Workers' Committee I was happy to wish the convention a happy "Canadian Library Month." I decided to use the signs created by National to profile and introduce people to our members who work in libraries. Throughout the week I got to know our library workers and allies about what their work/library means to them and I invite y'all to take a look. :)

Highlights:

Equality Forum: Art as Resistance Against Precarity

One of the best experiences in the labour movement I had was at the 2016 Summer Institute for Union Women where each session we had featured a local spoken word artist. Art allows history to breathe - to capture the voices of the marginalized; the voices not quoted in history textbooks. 

This panel was moderated by Gein Wong (spoken word, video and playwright) and featured Syrus Marcus Ware (visual artist and core team member of Black Lives Matter), Florencia Berinstein (Executive Director of the Workers Heritage and Arts Centre in Hamilton),Tzazna Miranda Leal (Justice for Migrant Workers and Harvest Freedom Campaign). It was awesome to have a diverse group of panelists whose identities intersected on so many levels.

Once we heard from each of the panelists we were all pushed out of our comfort zones when we had to choose a station to practice our art. There was the song writing/chants corner, the performance art corner, and the collage and banner making corner. I chose the collage corner and decided to group collage. I made a new friend - Maureen from Toronto who worked at Children's Aid of Toronto. So Susanne, Maureen and I worked together on our intersectional feminist collage. We cut out pictures from all kinds of publications and glued them together. Others did the same and all of a sudden we had a whole gallery of political collages and posters, made by us! 

At the end the chant group made up great chant in relation to resolution C-8.

The performance art group did a spoof of Wheel of Fortune where contestants spun the wheel of precarity. I got to participate and was lucky enough to "win" $2000 month in rent and $2000 in daycare fees (no one took me up on the offer to sell my baby). Satire at its finest! 





Disability Rights Activist Award - Sheryl Burns

One of my femtors and most favourite people I've met in the labour movement is Sheryl Burns (President of CUPE 1936). She is tenacious, hardworking, smart, genuine, inspiring and...she's also really nice. She won this year's disability rights activist award and her speech was keynote worthy. She's always eloquent but she took her speech game to another level - emotional, political , personal, riveting. I am so proud to know her and call her my friend. 

Sheryl has been on the frontline of advocacy for disability rights for a long time. I've learned so much about disability rights from her - whether it's about accessibility audits for events or working together to look at possibilities for people with developmental disabilities to find meaningful employment - I'm always learning from her. Way to go Sheryl!


October 4th- Sisters in Spirit Vigil 

We were treated to a condensed version of the "Have You Seen Our Sisters?" presentation from the CLC (thank you Laurie Antonin) where dancers Jade Brown and Amanda Gould performed to honour the 1200+ murdered and missing indigenous women and girls in Canada. 

At lunch we gathered just outside the convention centre - NEB members and members from various indigenous groups from around the country held a red dress in a circle. After a few short speeches we heard from the local nation. I am so grateful to be able to share the space at a vigil like this. My heart breaks for the MMIWG and their families. 

Keynote Speakers

• Armine Yalnizyan - Economist
• Stephen Lewis
• Nesrine Malik - Writer
• Dalila Awada - activist, Founder of Fondation Paroles de Femmes
• Jagmeet Singh - Leader, Federal NDP

Elections

So many elections. 

Congrats to Mark, Charles and the rest of the NEB on their elections!

Resolution 143 

I wrote the resolution in regards to the creation of a sexual violence tool kit/critical incident stress response plan/bystander training for the CUPE BC convention after last year's Sector Council meeting in which I wrote about at length on this blog already. 

3 minutes to sum up 3 days worth of valuable and dense discussion on a topic that is 6 shades of complicated was daunting. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to say but Michelle and Deborah set the context of the resolution so well, I could come in with our laundry list of asks (model language, OHS considerations, training on the continuum of sexual violence, legal issues related to the topic, a national rep dedicated to the issue [got some woots from ON on that one], bystander training...). Microphone 1 was deep in Ontario territory so my BC people were on the other side of the hall - it didn't matter. After I was done, I heard someone yell my name and ran over to Janice Folk-Dawson from CUPE 1334 (University of Guelph) and chair of CUPE ON OUWUCC to gave her a great big hug. 

It passed!

We succeeded in getting something tangible from those discussions last year and I am really looking forward to seeing the workshops, toolkits, staffing associated with this resolution. 

C8 - Addition of 4 Diversity Vice Presidents on the National Executive Board

The most controversial resolution on the floor for sure. The NEB brought forward a resolution to support the addition of 4 diversity vice presidents on NEB - LGBTQTTI*, workers with disabilities, young workers and women. 

I am in full support of this resolution. The best boards make the best decisions when there are diverse voices at the table. The current NEB is homogenous (sans the current DVPs) . Few women (when the make up of the union is about 70% women), white, middle-aged and male. It's alarming. It also hurts us if we truly want to grow this union - workers want to go where they can see themselves reflected in the union and right now...well...it doesn't surprise me that other unions are growing faster than CUPE. 

The debate on the resolution was definitely heated but respectful. The merit argument kept coming up over and over again and that's frustrating as hell. Do we expect indigenous people in Canada be the ones responsible for reconciliation? No. So why do people feel the need to put the onus of equity on those who are the most marginalized? I don't get it. I never will.

As someone who has an equity seat at the BC Fed Officers table, I have equal voice and vote as the men on the board, let me tell you about my experience in the labour movement. It's not unusual that I walk into a room and I'm expected to take the notes. I've been asked to take minutes where my male counterparts have not. I've been asked to make coffee or fetch water, where my male counterparts have not. I am often passed over in meetings when I want to speak, having to make sure I get my turn every time - and in those meetings, it's not unusual for one of the men to cut me off in the middle of what I'm saying. Even today, my credibility and credentials are questioned or brushed aside when a man who is the same age with the same level of experience is turned to for authority and I'm just an afterthought or ignored. This is as a white, straight woman. I can't imagine what it is like for someone from an equity seeking group looking to burst through the iron ceiling to even have a shot at a leadership position in the labour movement. 

Back to convention...Order on the floor started going to shit and I have got to give Mark Hancock some mad props for  and chairing like a boss and holding the floor. Even though the resolution failed, I have to take a moment and thank Donna and Sheryl for championing this equity issue and getting us past 50% of votes on the floor (it needed 2/3 to pass). 

The frustration expressed on the floor is raw and it's real.  I'm very humbled when people decide to share their truths - bringing their oppression to light in front of thousands of strangers. One of my take-aways will be to start to unpack what it means to be an ally and what allyship is about.

Conclusions/Reflections

My first convention as a National Trustee went well - our report was fine though what was glaringly clear to me was that we must do a better job on educating the members on the floor the difference between the National Secretary-Treasurer and the Trustees. The questions/debate on the Trustees report were 98% appropriate for Charles' report not ours. That being said I'm glad to be a member of an organization where our finances are in good hands. 

Cindy and Michelle organized BC on the convention floor like nobody's business. BC delegates rocked the mics and we couldn't have done it without their hard, tireless work and we all need to thank them.

I really enjoyed the Library Workers' dinner that Maureen from CUPE 4948 organized. About 30 of us sat down and broke bread and talked about scintillating topics like metadata, ILS systems, metrics, committee work. :)

It was great to spend time with my local - it's been a rough couple of months and I am so lucky to have the friendship with my peeps from CUPE 2950. 

There is a lot of great work happening around the country to advance the worker's agenda. Our members are truly our strength and listening to people's stories from across Canada will always be my favourite part of convention. 

Thanks for reading!

That is all.

CUPE 2950 delegation at CUPE National Convention Toronto 2017