06.27.2018

WASHINGTON, DC -- In response to today’s Supreme Court ruling in Janus v. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the Center for Popular Democracy released the following statement from Co-Executive Director Andrew Friedman:

"Today's Supreme Court decision on Janus doesn't just deal a blow to unions - it chips away at workers' ability to use collective action as a means of bringing about equity in our economy. As a national network of grassroots organizations of working families, we are deeply troubled by the ruling. This is yet another barrier for hard-working people to lead prosperous, healthy, and fulfilling lives. With this decision, powerful billionaires continue to rig the economy against working people and their families. We can’t let them.  

Janus will hurt the entire progressive ecosystem, including grassroots organizations that work with labor unions to lead the fight for racial and economic justice. By attacking the democratic infrastructure we need to defend our communities, particularly in this moment of political attack, this decision hurts us all.

We will all need to work harder to find innovative ways to sustain our organizing work over the long term. And none of us can rest. We have to stand and resist attempts to undercut a core element of American democracy -- unions."

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Media Contact:

Asya Pikovsky, apikovsky@populardemocracy.org, 207-522-2442