In the tradition of Cesar Chavez and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., students and workers stood as one in the fight for economic justice and workers' rights on campuses and in communities nationwide. 2008 marks the 40th anniversary of the successful strike by the Memphis sanitation workers which lead to the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This year, thousands of students participated in over 225 actions and events during the week of action. Students demanded that their universities and corporations pay their workers living wages, provide adequate medical benefits, respect workers rights to organize, collectively bargain, and more.
The National Student Labor Week of Action (NSLWoA) is more than just a time for students to take action on their respective campaigns. For many, the NSLWoA is a strategic moment to bring to fruition a plan/campaign that they've been working on for months, if not years. It is an opportunity to reach across campuses and communities and get to know other activists and organizers and their fights for social change on a wide range of issues like environmental justice, human rights, and racial justice to name a few. It is a chance to get to know workers on campus and begin to understand the issues on their particular campus or community, and from that beginning to let others know of the injustices occurring in their daily lives. For others, it is an opportunity to show solidarity with friends, allies, or other champions of justice.
The NSLWoA, helps students and their allies know they are not alone in their struggles for workers rights, economic, and social justice on their campuses and communities.
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