WADE RATHKE is the founder of ACORN, Chief Organizer at ACORN International, and Author of "Nuts & Bolts", "Citizen Wealth", "Global Grassroots", and "The Battle for the 9th Ward".
Houston Years ago, my one-liner response to questions about how I had chosen a career as an organizer of unions and community groups was simple: I was looking for a job where I didn’t have to do heavy lifting. I had to drop that joke, when ACORN offices in the late 70s and 80s …
Montreal Listening to one great report after another from office directors in ACORN Canada was exciting, whether they were talking about growth or campaign victories. It was hard to believe that this record-breaking performance was being achieved against the obstacles of the pandemic. Internally, the new membership numbers were the best in a dozen years. The dues paid …
New Orleans These days Amazon is the big dog barking, but we’re starting to nip at its heels. The NLRB Regional Director has ruled on the objections filed by the union, RWDSU/UFCW, from the election earlier in the year at one of their fulfillment warehouses in Bessemer, Alabama. He ordered a new election. The union says that it …
Paris Given visa problems back and forth to India, it was a rare treat to be able to meet with at least two of our India directors, Vinod Shetty from Mumbai, and Dharmendra Kumar from Delhi. We have made great progress in moving our organizing forward among informal workers and their communities during this …