Race, Unions, and the Presidential Election

NPR's Morning Edition this morning ran a story about Richard Trumka, UMW President and secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, who for the last several months has been giving speeches on the issue of race and the presidential election.  It's a reaction, he says, to racist comments he has personally encountered; he says he feels compelled to personally challenge anyone in the labor movement who may not vote for Obama because he is black.  An excerpt from a speech at the United Steelworkers convention:

Our kids are moving away because there's no future here.  And here's a man, Barack Obama, who's going to fight for people like us, and you won't vote for him because of the color of his skin?  Are you out of your ever-loving mind?

Here's the NPR story.  Hat tip: Danielle Lorenz.

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