The biggest moment in recent labor history.
The Minneapolis General Strike took place on January 23rd across the US. It was a large-scale labor stoppage and protest in opposition to expanded federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations and the administration’s mass deportation policies. Labor unions, community organizations, and faith leaders called for this general strike, making it the first general strike in the US in 80 years. Their demands include: ICE leave Minnesota now, the agent who killed Renee Good be held legally accountable, no further federal funding for ICE, and for Minnesotan and national companies to become 4th amendment businesses- ceasing economic relations with ICE and refusing ICE entry or using their property for staging grounds. It was estimated that tens of thousands of protesters attended and hundreds of businesses across Minnesota closed in solidarity with this movement, despite the bitter cold (temperatures as low as minus 20 Fahrenheit).
Many haven’t heard of this major moment in recent labor history because those in power don’t want workers getting ideas about how to effectively resist. General strikes are rare, but not because workers lacked the bravery to fight. They’ve been rare because the ruling class always moved quickly and violently whenever these movements came to be. They were often met with police violence, mass arrests, court injunctions, federal intervention, etc. Like UConn’s professional employees keeping UConn running, these general strikes have usually exposed those who actually kept society running.
Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou, President of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, shared why union federations joined this call: “Working people, our schools and our communities are under attack. Union members are being detained commuting to and from work, tearing apart families. Parents are being forced to stay home, students held out of school, fearing for their lives, all while the employer class remains silent. Our labor federations are encouraging everyone to participate on January 23rd. It’s time for every single Minnesotan who loves this state and the notion of truth and freedom to raise their voices and deepen their solidarity for our neighbors and coworkers living under this federal occupation.”
Many share confusion and concerns about a strike that lasts one day. How is the economic impact of this strike actually hitting where it hurts the most? There’s a great deal of community building and awareness that happens as a result of a strike like this. Between immigrant community members, Minnesota healthcare providers, public sector workers, owners of small businesses, folks are sticking together and united around a single message: ICE OUT.