Honoring Martin Luther King, Jr.

In 1961, while addressing the AFL-CIO convention attendees, Martin Luther King, Jr. said:

I look forward confidently to the day when all who work for a living will be one with no thought to their separateness as Negroes, Jews, Italians or any other distinctions. This will be the day when we bring into full realization the American dream—a dream yet unfulfilled. A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men will not take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few; a dream of a land where men will not argue that the color of a man's skin determines the content of his character; a dream of a nation where all our gifts and resources are held not for ourselves alone, but as instruments of service for the rest of humanity; the dream of a country where every man will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality. That is the dream...

On Monday, as the nation honors both the man and his legacy the trade union movement will highlight the gains and benefits of the civil rights movement and declare that we will never yield in our pursuit of Dr. King’s dream. As Ohio's federation of labor unions, in the memory of Dr. King’s vision, we will forever advance our mission of ending racism and achieving social, and economic justice for all.

Let MLK Day remind us that there is much work to be done and the struggle for racial equality and reverence for the dignity of work continues. As essential workers, we kept our country moving during the height of the Covid pandemic. It was trade unionists and working people, like so many that came before us, that put it all on the line to keep our local communities together and the economy moving. This is what working people do every day and it personifies the dignity of work, something Dr. King often spoke of to be respected and rewarded.

So, on this day, we summon the strength and vision of Dr. King to never give up or give in to the forces of economic and social oppression and follow a path toward the intersection of worker rights and civil rights. As organized labor honors Dr. King, let us hold up his words – words to live by – to striking sanitation workers the evening before his assassination:

You are demanding that this city will respect the dignity of labor. So often we overlook the work and the significance of those who are not in professional jobs, of those who are not in the so-called big jobs. But let me say to you tonight that whenever you are engaged in work that serves humanity and is for the building of humanity, it has dignity and it has worth.

Let's continue to work in solidarity to ensure every worker has a living wage and benefits that allows us to retire with dignity.