As our referendum efforts continued, auto workers in Illinois were organizing with graduate workers in California. John Deere workers in Iowa were reaching out to legal workers in New York and vice versa. UAWD recording secretary Chris Budnick traveled from Kentucky to Virginia to support Volvo workers on strike this past summer. Just last month, UAW members and supporters of labor donated financial support to John Deere workers on strike in a wonderful display of solidarity. Senator Bernie Sanders joined our efforts to raise money for strikers as well. We are currently trying to raise awareness and donations for our UAW siblings on strike at Columbia University.
And this is perhaps the most beautiful aspect of the entire experience — it brought UAW members from all across the country together for the first time. In hindsight, it was a special moment where members from all sectors and of all different cultural and political backgrounds came together for a common cause — the right to a more democratic union.