Thousands march down Washington Blvd. at the Detroit March for Jobs, Justice and Peace on August 28, 2010. The main chants were led by the Moratorium NOW! Coalition which repeated the slogan: "Bail Out the People, Not the Banks! (Photo: Abayomi Azikiwe)
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Bernero, Jesse Jackson and UAW headline march for justice, jobs and peace
By NAOMI R. PATTON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
Thousands of people made their way from Jefferson Avenue in downtown Detroit to Grand Circus Park in what was billed as a march to “rebuild America’’ for jobs, justice and peace.
The march, on the anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s march on Washington, brought many of state’s Democratic politicians — many of whom were attending the party’s convention at Cobo Center. The march and rally were organized by the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and the United Auto Workers union.
Along the way, the march grew as convention goers and others joined in. Among the marchers were the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Bob King, UAW president; Mayor Dave Bing, U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., Congressman-elect and state Sen. Hansen Clarke, D-Detroit, and Democratic gubernatorial candidate and Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero, and his running mate Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence.
Unions concerned about jobs, unemployment
Workers from UAW, Service Employees International Union, American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Michigan Council 25, American Federation of Teachers, Detroit Public Schools workers filled the Washington Boulevard and Grand Circus Park, advocating for jobs.
“We’re not here to tear any body down . . . to divide any body . . . we care about all the unemployed in America,” King said.
He also asked the crowd to return for the city’s annual Labor Day march next week, and to vote in the November elections.
“We have to put Americans to work,” he said.
“I care about jobs,” said Tanya Ball, 44, who works at the Ford Wayne Assembly Plant, attended the march with her sister, Betty Ball, 55, both of Inkster. “I just came in the spirit of what was happening to our people 47 years ago (during the riots in Detroit) . . . there’s hardly any change,” Betty Ball said.
Tom Hopp, 52, of Lake Orion, said he has always been a fan of Jackson’s and came to the march to support the call for jobs. He has worked for General Motors Lake Orion for 32 years.
“It’s never a waste of a day coming out to an event like this,” he said.
Conyers invokes history
Though political speeches and slogans nearly dominated the day’s event, it was Conyers who reminded the crowd of about 5,000 of the historic significance of the day. It was King’s march down Woodward Avenue with then-UAW President Walter Reuther that served as the precursor to the march on Washington in which King gave his “I Have a Dream” speech.
“We’re celebrating jobs, foreclosure moratoriums, universal healthcare – cheer for that,” he said.
“Today’s march commemorates one of the most important days in our history,” Bing said after the march. “Our greatest challenge is creating jobs and that’s something I will continue to fight to bring to Detroit.”
Contact NAOMI R. PATTON : 313-223-4485 or npatton@freepress.com
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