Things are getting very dark in this country, and it's likely going to get worse before it gets better. At every turn—as collective society breaks down, as the ruling class continues to rob us blind, as humanity barrels towards climate catastrophe—working people are being encouraged to turn on each other and to see certain groups of their fellow workers as the enemy. From the demonization and increasingly violent attacks against LGBTQIA+ people, to an extremist-dominated Supreme Court preparing to strip away queer people's right to marry, to legislatures around the country working to eliminate trans people's right to exist, we must respond to these assaults on our neighbors and coworkers with the same spirit of solidarity that gives life to labor's eternal message: an injury to one is an injury to all. In this special and urgent episode, we speak with Gabbi Pierce and Martha Grevatt about how far the labor movement has come in defending the rights of LGBTQIA+ workers, how far we still have to go, and what role the labor movement can and must play in fighting for dignity and equality for all. 

Gabbi Pierce is an organizer with the Communications Workers of America (CWA), co-chair of Pride at Work—Twin Cities, and she is the first transgender person to serve on the Minnesota AFL-CIO General Board. Martha Grevatt is a retired autoworker and member of the United Auto Workers (UAW); she formerly served as Executive Board member for UAW Locals 122 and 869 and was a founding member of Pride at Work. 

Additional links/info below...

• Gabbi's Twitter page
• Communication Workers of America union.org/"> website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• Martha's Facebook page and Workers World author page 
• United Auto Workers website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• Unite All Workers for Democracy website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• Pride at Work website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• Kelly Hayes, Movement Memos, "Attacks on Trans Rights and Abortion Rights Are 'Bound Together'"
• Kelly Hayes, Movement Memos, "Attacks on Trans Youth Are a Fascist 'Moral Battering Ram'"
• Molly Shah, The Real News Network, "Supreme Court’s Hearings on Abortion Bans Are an Ominous Sign of What’s Coming"
• Kim Kelly, Teen Vogue, "How LGBTQ Union Activists Transformed the Labor Movement"

Permanent links below...

• Working People Patreon page
• Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!
• Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page

Featured Music (all songs sourced from the Free Music Archive: freemusicarchive.org)

• Jules Taylor, "Working People Theme Song