Three Congressmen to hold 2nd protest & attend ‘showdown’ METRA board meeting

 

While METRA officials have postponed its vote on an $86 million Englewood “Flyover” project that currently has less than one percent black participation, Rep. Bobby L. Rush (D-1st) late Wednesday night said that is a “shallow” victory and that he is going forth with his second jobs protest 9 a.m. Friday, May 11, 2012, outside of METRA’s headquarters, 547 W. Jackson Blvd., where he and his peers will face off with the board.

Rush, who will be joined by Reps. Danny K. Davis (D-7th) and Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. (D-2nd), will leave the METRA board meeting and lead hundreds to a second “Rebid the METRA contract/pre-mother’s day rally” 12 noon Friday outside of the James R. Thompson Center, 100 West Randolph.

Reached in Washington, D.C., Rush said he and his colleagues will be attending the METRA board meeting and will be on the protest line. “We are going to make sure the vote on this $86 million project is not on METRA’s agenda, and we want to face off with this board before they actually take a vote.

‘We want to make sure that our faces and the faces of the unemployed, the faces of those minority contractors who have not been considered, the faces of the relatives and friends “ will be present at Friday’s second jobs protest, he said.

When the congressmen leave the board meeting, they will march over to the James R. Thompson Building at 100 W. Randolph, where they will join with mothers “who are also rallying to get METRA to rebid that contract,” said Rush. “

Reminded that METRA has said it cannot legally rebid the contract, Rush said, “Our attorneys have indicated to us that METRA can rebid this contract. It is not without precedent.  It’s been done before, and we want METRA to rebid this countract.

“We are asking all of Chicago, those people who are really outraged, those who are unemployed and people who are offended that out of an $86 million contract the black community only got one measly $112,000 to join us this Friday. There is something grotesquely wrong with that in this day and age in the city of Chicago,” said Rush.

“We are METRA commuters. We ride METRA, and we want to be included in the awarding of the contracts. We get all of the dust, all of the dirt…but not the dough. We want METRA to cut us in or cut it out. We’re upset with METRA,” stated Rush.

Chinta Strausberg is a Journalist of more than 33-years, a former political reporter and a current PCC Network talk show host. You can e-mail Strausberg at: Chintabernie@aol.com.