How the Rabble Rousers won me over
By Dan DeDomenico
I’ve been a member of Local 696 since the last union elections were held, around this time in 2023. I am not a Rabble Rouser, but I’m voting for the Rabble Rousers on March 31. As a new member in 2023, I was impressed with the Rabble Rousers’ website and newsletter, and felt that they had the best ideas about how to strengthen the Local: expanding our team of stewards to fight harder against sick abuse, respond to changes in our working conditions, and achieve more wins for workers. As I attended more meetings and spoke to coworkers, I learned that the Rabble Rousers were divisive. Some members disliked them, or thought they were trouble. Others doubted that they’d be any different from the current leadership.
I didn’t like that the Rabble Rousers were seen as causing division in the union, because a union must be united to succeed. We work together to keep the city running, and when we stand up for ourselves we have to stand together to win. This kind of unity is only possible because we’re all hardworking people who share a common enemy in the boss, the city and the system that takes advantage of us. I have found that whatever differences I might have with another member of this Local, we will always share that common ground as workers. This strengthened my belief that our union needs a united and engaged membership. I hoped that after the last election, everyone could work together to reconcile the Rabble Rousers’ good ideas and talents with the skills and experience of the current leadership. I understood why the Rabble Rousers wanted to get more involved with the union, but I didn’t understand why some members and the current leadership were so opposed to that. I listened to many different members, and tried to understand their perspectives. What I learned was complicated. The divisiveness around the Rabble Rousers was partially due to gossip and misinformation about them, but it was also partially due to legitimate concerns about their shortcomings. It is not true that the Rabble Rousers are anti-union infiltrators, or “fake” members, or a “white slate” running to overthrow the union’s Black leadership. These rumors started as dishonest political attacks from the last election campaign. However, while there are Rabble Rousers from every walk of life, it’s also true that many newer, younger members who are not from Philly support the Rabble Rousers. I’ve learned that some veteran members are concerned that new workers from a very different background can’t understand their experience or represent them well. I think those concerns are valid, especially because in 2023, most Rabble Rousers were not organic leaders in their workplaces.
The ideal union representative should be an organic workplace leader – someone who workers already know they can count on to have their back. What I have seen in the last three years is a strong effort by the Rabble Rousers to identify and mobilize existing organic leaders, work with all members of the union, and become organic leaders themselves. These efforts are why Local 696 had some of the strongest picket lines when we went on strike last summer. During the strike, I saw personal dislikes and identity divisions disappear so that we could all stand together. On the picket line, it didn’t matter if you were Black or white, Christian or Muslim, LGBT, etc. All that mattered was that everyone was on the same page about getting the contract we deserve. The union we were during the strike is the kind of union I want to be in. I don’t want to be in a union that is constantly divided over politics.
President Dinkins and the current leadership have often spoken about how harmful factionalism can be to our union. I agree with them on this, but the best solution to the divisions we face has always been to let the Rabble Rousers join the team. I decided to declare my support for the Rabble Rousers because they intend to invite members of the current leadership back on to an expanded team of stewards. The Rabble Rousers understand that they’ll need everyone’s support to succeed, not just a narrow majority. Unless the current leadership will similarly commit to working with the Rabble Rousers, and with all our members, these divisions won’t go away.
I’m not a Rabble Rouser, I’m a member of Local 696. I want our Local to utilize every worker’s talents to secure a better life for all our members. No matter who wins on March 31, I’ll stand with whoever will stand alongside me, together for all of our members, and so will all of the Rabble Rousers. That’s why they won my vote, and that’s how they’re going to win one day, one way or another.