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PhillyUnions.com Headline News
January 19, 2007: Official Guild
Bulletin/Minority Members Meet With PN Publisher
From Melissa M. Nelson, Local Representative,
Newspaper Guild #10, Local 38010 of the
Newspaper Guild-Communications Workers of
America
On Tuesday, 1/16/07,
several of our members, with the support of the
National Association of Black Journalists, met
with top executives of the Philadelphia
Inquirer and Daily News.
The following is a
summary of their talking points, passed on with
their permission.
The Philadelphia
Inquirer
Diversity Observations
January 16, 2007
African American (11.3
percent), Asian American (4.7 percent) and
Hispanic American (2.1 percent) journalists are
the minorities represented on The Inquirer's
newsroom staff, according to the latest survey
of the American Society of Newspaper editors.
African American (16) and
Asian American (5) journalists represent a
disproportionate share (28 percent) of the
newsroom staff identified to be laid off by
The Inquirer.
Philadelphia's population
is 45 percent African American, 5 percent Asian
and 10 percent Hispanic, according to U.S.
Census figures, meaning that even before the
layoffs, The Inquirer newsroom staff was
a poor reflection of the community it covers.
Inadequate consideration
was given to diversity not only in naming those
to be laid off, but in subsequently carving out
specific newsroom jobs to be protected from the
layoffs. (For example, immigration is one of the
hottest topics in the nation, yet The
Inquirer's immigration reporter, an Asian
American, was laid off.)
The Inquirer City
Desk has only one black reporter and no black
editors as it prepares to cover a mayoral
election in which race will be an important
factor.
The lack of diversity on
The Inquirer Copy Desk puts it at a
dangerous disadvantage in sighting cultural and
ethnic slights before they get into the paper.
The lack of diversity
within The Inquirer Features Department
puts it at a disadvantage in sighting cultural
trends in music, dance, the theater, etc.,
within the Philadelphia region.
The lack of diversity
among The Inquirer's assigning editors
puts the paper at a disadvantage in deciding
which stories are most important to our readers.
The lack of diversity
among The Inquirer's regular columnists
presents a monolithic point of view on sundry
issues, suggesting to minority readers that the
paper doesn't really care about what they think.
The low number of Hispanics in the newsroom
echoes this concern.
With previous job actions
at The Inquirer having decimated its
number of more seasoned minority journalists,
current layoffs that have targeted junior
staffers have destroyed hopes for a new
generation to grow and become the paper's future
leaders.
The carving out of
"important" beats for protection from layoffs
has revealed The Inquirer's failure to
assign minority journalists to key beats. New
hires of minority journalists at entry-level
positions will only perpetuate that condition.
The Inquirer lacks
programs aimed at retention of veteran minority
journalists.
The Inquirer lacks
an active recruitment effort, complete with
director and staff, which can identify qualified
minority journalists at various levels of
experience who might be hired at any time in the
future.
The Inquirer has
failed to continue operation of a diversity
committee of staff, including top editors, which
would concern itself with the ethnic makeup of
the newsroom staff as well as coverage of our
minority communities.
The Inquirer has
failed to continue even infrequent content
analyses of its pages to ensure that our stories
and photographs properly reflect the diversity
of our readers.
Both Inquirer
publisher Brian P. Tierney and executive editor
Bill Marimow are to be commended for their
stated commitments to diversity, which must now
be borne out by their actions.
Any finger-pointing at
the Newspaper Guild for the impact of layoffs
and carve-outs does not excuse The Inquirer
for not taking additional steps available to it
to ensure that the diversity of its staff was
better protected.
The involvement of both
the Philadelphia Association of Black
Journalists and the National Association of
Black Journalists is indicative of the rest of
America's interest in how The Inquirer
handles these diversity issues.
The lack of coverage by
The Inquirer of these diversity issues,
given its previous coverage of other workplace
issues, suggests to readers that The Inquirer
is trying to hide from the subject rather than
take positive action.
Considering these
observations, minority journalists at The
Inquirer collectively request that positive
action be taken now, with the immediate object
being to reduce the number of minority
journalists included in the current list of
those to be laid off. Thank you.
Respectfully submitted by
Inquirer staffers.
January 19, 2007: US Labor
Against the War and United for Peace and Justice
Invite You to a National Demonstration on
1/27/07
From Patrick Eiding, President,
Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO
US Labor Against the War
and United for Peace and Justice Invite You to
Join a National Demonstration to End the War and
Turn Our Country Around
WHEN: Saturday, January
27, 2007
WHERE: Washington, DC
On Election Day voters
delivered a dramatic, unmistakable mandate for
peace. Now it's time for action. On January 27,
2007, we will converge from all around the
country in Washington, DC to send a strong,
clear message to Congress and the Bush
Administration: "The people of this country want
the war and occupation in Iraq to end and we
want the troops brought home now!" Congress has
the power to end this war through legislation.
We call on every union and people from
everywhere in the U.S. to speak out!
WHY IS LABOR SPEAKING
OUT?
The AFL-CIO and unions
like the Service Employees; American Federation
of State, County & Municipal Employees;
Communications Workers; Postal Workers; United
Electrical Workers; Teachers; United Food and
Commercial Workers and others representing
millions of working people point to --
* A war based on lies
that put our troops in harm's way, killing more
than 3,000 and wounding and maiming 22,000 more
(many of them coworkers and family of union
members); National Guard and Reserve members
taken from their jobs, families and communities;
* Veterans' benefits and
services cut at the very time their need is
growing;
* A war costing hundreds
of billions of dollars has siphoned funds from
programs to meet human needs -- for jobs, health
care, housing, education, infrastructure, care
for victims of disasters, & for our environment;
* Millions of our tax
dollars funneled to corporate cronies of the
Bush administration;
* 100,000 Iraqis killed,
a majority of Iraqis turned against us,
terrorism spreading, our nation less secure;
* In the name of
"spreading freedom," our own civil liberties are
threatened and Constitution undermined; the
right to organize is under siege here while
being denied to workers in Iraq;
* A war that has served
as a smokescreen for a corporate assault on
working people and our unions: pensions
canceled, jobs outsourced & privatized, plants
shuttered, working conditions eroded, immigrants
scapegoated, and the social safety net we fought
so long to create in tatters;
* Tax breaks for the
rich, subsidies for corporations, and the shaft
for the rest of us.
Join trade unionists,
religious and community groups, civil rights and
social justice activists, environmentalists,
students & people from all walks of life to tell
the government -- End the War in Iraq! Dismantle
U.S. Bases in Iraq! Support Our Troops -- Bring
Them All Home from Iraq Now! Fund Jobs, Health
Care, Education, Housing & Transportation -- Not
Wars and Occupations!
Buses will leave at 8:30
a.m. from 1606 Walnut St., Philadelphia, and
return by 7:00 p.m.
To reserve a seat, send
$10 payable to US Labor Against the War to Kathy
Black, AFSCME DC 47, 1606 Walnut St., Phila., PA
19103. Include the following information:
Name, phone number, email
address, union or organization.
For more details or to
RSVP call 215-893-3770 or email
kblack@dc47.org.
No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Local sponsors include:
Phila. US Labor Against the War; AFSCME DC47;
Phila. Federation of Teachers; Phila. Coalition
of Labor Union Women. (List in early formation;
labor donated.)
January 19, 2007: Women Against Abuse Benefit on
1/30/07
From
The Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW),
Philadelpha Chapter
You're Invited to the
Philadelphia CLUW's 9th Annual Benefit for Women
Against Abuse
THE CITY OF SISTERLY
LOVE: STOP THE SEXUAL ASSAULT
Tuesday, January 30th, 2006, 5:30 PM
22 S. 22nd Street, 2nd floor, UNITE/HERE Joint
Board Room
(Some parking available in building garage after
5:00 p.m.)
Refreshments will be
served
50/50 Raffle
Guest Speakers:
* Capt. Sonia Velasquez,
Victim Services Unit, Philadelphia Police Dept.
* Alison Stein, Founder
of Younger Women's Task Force, Nat'l Council of
Women's Organizations
* Carole Johnson,
Director, Women Organized Against Rape
Please bring an item from
the Women Against Abuse wish list to donate or
make a financial contribution. A list of items
can be found on their website at
http://www.womenagainstabuse.org/wish.html.
Checks should be made
payable to Women Against Abuse, and can be
mailed to CLUW, 1606 Walnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19103 or brought to the event.
We encourage you to seek financial donations
from your union!
The event is free and
open to the public. Please bring friends and
family members.
To RSVP or for more
information, call or email CLUW, 215-893-3770,
Kblack@dc47.org
If you would like to
donate but cannot come to the event, you may
bring your items to AFSCME DC47, 1606 Walnut
Street or to Theresa Harris at UNITE/HERE, 22 S.
22nd Street.
January 19, 2007: All Star
Labor Classic Celebrates 20 Years on 4/1/07
From
United Cerebral Palsy (UCP)
 Sunday,
April 1, 2007
12:30 PM Tip Off
Come be part of the
excitement as Philadelphia's Organized Labor
supports United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) and area
high school basketball standouts. On Sunday,
April 1 at St. Joseph's University Fieldhouse
(54th & City Avenue) you'll have the chance to
see the best of the best senior high school
basketball players (boys and girls) face off in
two "city vs. suburbs" basketball games.
Fun for the whole family,
the day includes an exhibition game between
members of the media and our own unions, area
cheerleader and dance team performances, prize
giveaways and more!
In addition to benefiting
children and adults with disabilities in the
Greater Philadelphia area, the Labor Classic
awards our student athletes scholarships to put
toward their continuing education.
Tickets are free for
students and $5 for adults.
For more information on
this year's All Star Labor Classic contact
United Cerebral Palsy's Development Department
at (215) 242-4200 ext. 289 or email
seucp@aol.com.
Visit
www.ucpphila.org to learn more about the
organization. |
