The report says the Illinois Labor Network Against Apartheid (ILNAA) was inspired by the solidarity of 350,000 striking mineworkers in South Africa; South African unions have inspired many workers throughout the world. ILNAA educates and activates members of local union affiliates in solidarity with South African trade unions in their struggle. While ILNAA helps in the immediate struggle to bring about a democratic society in South Africa, we also watch and learn from South Africa's labor movement which is growing rapidly and has triple the percentage of union members as in the U.S. ILNAA has these goals: (1) to identify common interests that advance working and living conditions of workers...
The report says the Illinois Labor Network Against Apartheid (ILNAA) was inspired by the solidarity of 350,000 striking mineworkers in South Africa; South African unions have inspired many workers throughout the world. ILNAA educates and activates members of local union affiliates in solidarity with South African trade unions in their struggle. While ILNAA helps in the immediate struggle to bring about a democratic society in South Africa, we also watch and learn from South Africa's labor movement which is growing rapidly and has triple the percentage of union members as in the U.S. ILNAA has these goals: (1) to identify common interests that advance working and living conditions of workers here and there; (2) to foster joint efforts to protect workers' rights among common multinational employers, and within industries and work sectors; and (3) to cooperate with local organizations on actions which both enhance labor rights and strengthen support for the democratic movement in South Africa. ILNAA takes these actions: (1) creates links between unions here and there and advocates union-to-union solidarity; hosts visiting trade unionists; takes action against multinationals; (2) conducts education programs in local unions on "Labor Solidarity and the New South Africa"; and (3) helps keep the pressure on by opposing repression of trade unions and exposing apartheid's continuing legacy of violence and propaganda. Like the AFL-CIO, ILNAA pledges continued support for economic sanctions against South Africa until the South African trade union movement advises us otherwise. The Reagan/Bush era has finally ended - an era when U.S. working and living conditions declined; when ugly racism found new life; and when workers' rights and human rights, here and abroad, endured relentless attack. Not once in this era did U.S. leaders vote in the U.N. against apartheid; it took enormous public outrage just to get Congress to override President Reagan's veto of mild sanctions against South Africa. South African unions seek to learn from our experience: how to set up democratic procedures, to register voters, to get out the vote, to stop vote fraud. The report mentions IBM, Caterpillar (CAT), Ford, Shell, health care, multinational corporations, slavery, Native American reservations, and African homelands.
