Solidarity in Crisis: Our Union Stands United for Justice
Statement from AFSCME Council 5:
We say her name: Renee Nicole Good. She should be alive today. But instead, she was shot and killed by a masked federal agent, leaving her wife and 3 children traumatized and a community in fear and pain. We mourn her death, and we stand with her family, loved ones, and community in their grief. This isn't about politics, this is about humanity. Politicians come and go, but our values must live on for eternity.
What has been happening in Minneapolis, St. Paul, St. Cloud, Shakopee and other cities across our state and country have shaken our conscience and intensified the fear, pain, anger, and trauma many are feeling in our neighborhoods, in our elementary and high schools, in our office buildings, in our hospitals, and at our doorsteps. This has been the reality for thousands of our union members.
These actions do not happen in a vacuum. Thousands of federal agents, often masked and without any identification and many without a uniform on, have descended upon our state and are creating fear and confusion not only for our neighbors but for local law enforcement as well, and it is eroding public trust, and escalating an already tense situation.
It is appalling that conclusions have been immediately predetermined by the federal administration before a full, independent, and thorough investigation can even begin, let alone be completed. Accountability cannot exist when outcomes are decided well in advance and meant to serve one's political agenda. Our state needs and deserves transparency, due process, and an investigation that is truly independent and credible, guided by facts rather than political agendas.
Our union proudly represents workers with many perspectives on immigration policy, and those who serve our communities bravely in essential public safety roles. We honor that diversity of views. And we are all united by our core principles as a union family that there is dignity in all work, all people deserve to be treated with respect, and that due process and justice is essential for us to live in a functioning society.
We will always be a union that stands up for our union members, no matter their immigration status. That commitment is fundamental to who we are as a labor movement. Solidarity is not a slogan; it is an obligation and a responsibility we must live every day. It means rejecting fear, dehumanization, and violence, and standing firm for dignity, safety, and justice for all working people. It means fighting for others when they are under attack because it could be us next.
It means living our creed that "an injury to one is an injury to all" or we stand for nothing at all. And it means that we all must care just as much for the construction trades union member here in Minnesota who was rounded up by federal authorities yesterday even though he is legally able to work in our country and has since been disappeared, as we would if that worker was our own brother.
We are grateful for the ways our members are checking in with one another and how our union brings people together. We are a union family and in moments like this, we must continue to have each other’s backs.
In solidarity,
Bart Andersen
Executive Director
AFSCME Council 5