Black Union Members Seek to Flex Political Clout in 2016 Elections
45th Convention of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) Expected to Draw 800-1,000 Workers, May 25-30, 2016, in Washington, DC
The 45th International Convention of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) will be held Wednesday, May 25 – Monday, May 26, 2016, at the Washington Hilton Hotel, 1919 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC. It is sponsored by the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU).
More than 800 union activists and guests from the U.S. and Canada, representing 77 international unions will attend.
The outcome of the 2016 national elections could well ride on the political muscle of black workers in unions. The elections will be a major focal point for the 800 – 1,000 workers who will participate in the 45th international convention of the Coalition Black Trade Unionists in Washington, DC, May 25 – 30, 2016. Speakers this year include D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, and Randi Weingarten, president of the 1.6 million-member American Federation of Teachers, and Melanie Campbell, president and CEO of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and convener of the Black Women’s Roundtable Public Policy Network.
Labor unions, and specifically millions of black trade unionists, will play a huge role in efforts to mobilize African American voters, whose turnout could play a decisive role in determining whether the Democrats retain the White House and which political party controls Congress and many statehouses around the country.
One of every seven union members is African American. Many live in key battleground states, such as Ohio, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Illinois, putting black workers in the vanguard of organized labor’s ground game in the 2016 elections.
In 2007, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama spoke at CBTU’s convention, which gave his historic campaign a timely boost with black voters and trade unionists.
For a complete schedule of CBTU convention events, visit our website, www.cbtu.org
For convention updates, follow CBTU on Facebook, Twitter @CBTU72, and Instagram.
