Reimagining and Reigniting Worker Power
Reimagining and Reigniting Worker Power Working people currently face major challenges for economic justice and legitimate control of their workplaces and beyond. Hear some of these challenges as well as ideas and proposals for working people to build diverse coalitions capable of creating real justice and democracy.
Panelists:
Afifa Khaliq, Chief of Staff SEIU Florida Public Services Union. She is a strategic thinker, communicator, collaborator and program developer who provides social development solutions. Afifa has worked on racial injustices, women empowerment, challenging the socio-economic norms that maintain the status quo that perpetuates injustices. Her development project on women’s rights won international recognition. She’s part of a creative core team that is setting new trends and redefining labor, politics, economy and social justice. Afifa is also the board chair of the Florida Immigrant Coalition. She is a founding member of the South Florida Muslim Federation. She is an unapologetic and proud Muslim, married, blessed with a son and lives in West Palm Beach.
Karina Ramirez (She/Her/Ella) joined Citizen Climate Lobby as a volunteer in 2017 and has served as Diversity & Inclusion Director since 2018. In her role, she supports volunteers and staff working toward inclusion and belonging efforts. She leads the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Monitoring Team at CCL, a staff-level group that provides feedback and tracks the organization’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion plan. She has supported the creation of several affinity teams at CCL including Latinos, People of the Global Majority, Climate & Culture, Asian Pacific, LGBTQIA+ and Allies Outreach, Listening to Indigenous Voices, and the Differently Abled Action Teams. Karina also supervises CCL’s Spanish-language efforts through our website and its social media accounts. Prior to her work with CCL, Karina spent a decade as a multimedia journalist for diverse audiences in Dallas, Texas. Her news stories ranged from local news, to business, and immigration topics. Karina holds a master’s degree in Journalism from the University of North Texas and a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from American University. When she is not working, she is volunteering at her local community garden and participates in local climate and community events. Karina is originally from Ecuador and lives in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Lawrence spent his working life in Wildlife Biology, Arboriculture, Truck Driving, Warehousing, and Political Organizing. He enjoys representing his Union, IBT70, as a delegate to the Alameda Labor Council, AFL-CIO, of which he is also an officer. His favorite pastime is planting seeds and native plants to restore nature and advocating for Move to Amend. His obsession is movement-building with MTA, as Co-Chair for the Labor Caucus, and telling everyone, “The #WeThePeopleAmendment gives me hope for the future of all life on this amazing earth!”
Linda is a retired professor of Classics at the University of Montana. She was a part of the unionized faculty at that university and became strongly convinced of the importance –even centrality– of unions to the dignity and terms of worker employment. She is Co-Chair for the Labor Caucus of MTA and also works with the Poor People’s Campaign and the League of Women Voters of the Piedmont Triad in Winston-Salem, NC, which is now her home.