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Open House at Mother Jones Museum: April 30, 2016
 The Mother Jones Museum in Mt. Olive, Illinois, will host an Open House from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 30th.
The title of the program is "May Day and Solidarity: Miners, Mother Jones, and the Struggle for a Living Wage."
Visitors will be able to see the plans for the museum as they have developed over the past few months. Jeanna Brown, granddaughter of a miner who organized in West Virginia with Mother Jones, will talk about her ancestor's memories of Mother Jones. There will be performances, poetry, and exhibits on the themes of solidarity. In addition, the museum will also host a special showing of excerpts of the new PBS
Mine Wars
documentary, with a wraparound talk by the museum's lead historian, who is also featured in the film, Rosemary Feurer of Northern Illinois University.
Hollywood will be helping to create some buzz around the Museum! Nina Zippay and John Cariani, actor and accomplished playwright, will be working with the museum board for a film on the story of Mother Jones, regional labor history, and the miners who joined Mother Jones in the struggles for fair wages. They will be filming and recording people's memories and views of Mother Jones in Mt. Olive on April 29th and 30th. If you are interested in being a part of this project, contact The Mother Jones Museum IN ADVANCE at
motherjones1930@hotmail.com
or at 815-754-4750.
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Elise M. Foster: Florence Criley Award Winner
On March 17, 2016, Elise M. Foster received the Florence Criley Award at a dinner held by the Chicago Chapter of the Coalition of Labor Union Women. The Florence Criley Award is given to a CLUW member who exemplifies leadership in the labor movement. Ms. Foster fits that bill. Accepting the award, she spoke about the importance of working phone banks for candidates who oppose the current governor's anti-union policies.
In a telephone conversation, Elise M. Foster said that although she grew up in a union household, when she was younger she had not known that much about what went on in unions. But that all changed when she was asked by coworkers to become a union steward. Since then, she has been a longtime labor activist who is a letter carrier at Cesar E. Chavez (Pilsen) station with 21 years of service, and Branch 11 Vice-President of the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC), having first been appointed to that position and then elected in her own right. She is the first woman to serve in that capacity. A graduate of the NALC Leadership Academy, Ms. Foster was trained as an NALC arbitration advocate. In 2011, she was appointed to Branch 11 By-Laws Committee and also served as a member of Branch 11's Breast Cancer Committee. She oversees the grievance process for Branch 11.
Ms. Foster was a delegate to the Illinois State AFL-CIO convention, and NALC delegate to the National AFL-CIO convention. In 2014, she was elected to the Chicago Federation of Labor Executive Board, and she is also a member of the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW).
Elise Foster was asked if she would like to impart any message to young people today. She responded, "
To whom much is given, much is required. We must continue the fight, get involved and stay involved."
Last year, Ms. Foster attended the Regina V. Polk Women's Labor Leadership Conference for the leadership and development of women in labor, and received its Alumna of the Year Award in 2015.
This year, we say, congratulations to Elise M. Foster, a recipient of the Florence Criley Award for 2016!
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Tara Stamps - Independently Strengthening the 37th Ward
Last year a Chicago Public School teacher, Tara Stamps, ran for alderman of the 37th Ward against fifteen-year incumbent, Emma Mitts. The race ended in a loss for Stamps, but it was close: 47% for Stamps and 53% for Mitts. Stamps had been endorsed by the
Chicago Tribune as an "independent voice for the 37th ward," a sentiment which echoed Stamps's own accusation of Mitts being a "rubber stamp alderman." Though Stamps did not win the election, her passion for activism and creating positive change in her ward has not wavered.
Stamps is an active member of the Chicago Teacher's Union, and has recently founded the Greater Austin Independent Political Organization, which is focused on increasing community members' understanding of how political issues affect their daily lives. They hold regular community meetings, canvass to raise awareness, and discuss how they would like their community to look and feel. The violence and lack of opportunity in the 37th Ward is emblematic of Chicago's disastrously mismanaged budget and policy. Stamps names underemployment as the root cause of the 37th Ward's issues with violence. West Garfield Park, a neighborhood in the 37th Ward, has the highest violent crime rate in the City of Chicago and an unemployment rate around 30%.
"People need jobs, and a living wage. When people are working and can put food in their mouths, they can become a part of the fabric of our community and start to give back."
Stamps would like to see a public works program similar to the New Deal put in place. "The government must take responsibility for rebuilding," she says. "Investing in people....We need a new public works program. People over profit. Strengthen America by strengthening Americans." In Stamps's view the current mode of closing schools and cutting public services is only contributing to the cycle of poverty and crime.
When asked if she plans on running for alderman again in the 37th ward, she answered: "It's distinctly possible...I learned a lot, the needs of my community haven't changed. We still need an advocate and somebody to fight for us."
Stamps attributes much of her inspiration and passion to her late mother, public housing activist, Marion Stamps. Stamps speaks of her with great admiration:
"My mother taught me how to fight, [she was] a relentless fighter but very well studied, brilliant in terms of knowing policy. [She]
made policy make sense to everyday people. That is what haunts me--it is not enough to stand your ground; we should all know these laws and these policies that dictate how we live. If you don't know it, you can't fight it."
It is with that in mind that Stamps conducts her work with the Greater Austin Independent Political Association. Working to make policy make sense to voters is a family tradition.
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