Midwest
The Power of Sugar Beets: Long-time Labor Organizer on Politics in the Red River Valley
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As sugar beet harvesting season comes and goes in the Red River Valley, a labor organizer and leader reflects on worker power in the region.
Environment
A Taste of Working-Class Environmentalism with a Hospital Cook from Albert Lea
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A cook and farmer on climate, labor, and the community organizing ecosystem in Minnesota.
Immigration
Dispatch From a Meat Packing Factory: “If We Unite as Workers, We Have the Power”
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Read a Spanish-language version of this interview here. Dina Velasquez Escalante is a poultry worker in southwest Minnesota. She spends her workdays inspecting the chicken millions of Americans eat every day. She looks for tumors, stray bones and organs, and removes bile. After six years of hard work and cultivating expertise on almost every position on the line, she’s now in the laboratory testing samples of poultry to ensure the highest quality.
As a union steward with the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) Local 663 at Butterfield Foods in Butterfield, Minnesota, Escalante is also tasked with ensuring her fellow workers receive fair treatment and safety on the line.
Climate Change
Driving Transit in Rural Minnesota: A Bus Operator Reflects on Safety and Sustainability
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Public transportation is a lifeline for small town residents in Minnesota. Syd Bauer explains how the bus plays a role in their commitment to climate justice and pandemic safety.
Minnesota
How Academia’s Over Reliance on Contingent Faculty Hurts Workers and Students’ Quality of Education
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Adjunct and contingent faculty make up the majority of instructional staff at colleges and universities today. Faith Ericson explains what that means for these highly qualified and underpaid workers and the role of liberal arts education outside of major city centers.
Minnesota
“Finally Somebody’s Fighting For Us”: Grocery Store Workers are Fed Up
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How grocery store workers in Greater Minnesota fighting for better pay and working conditions are sticking together and transforming their union.
Media
Iron Range Childcare Worker on Organizing for Better Care for Children
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How a childcare worker and mom living and working in Minnesota’s Iron Range would like to see the industry better support workers and children alike.