BLACK AND ETHNIC MINORITY CONFERENCE

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: april 2011 :: RMTnews 26 RMT member Frank Murray presented a report to conference on behalf of the national black and ethnic minority advisory committee and took the opportunity to explain how lay member democracy inside the union worked in practice. He explained how a resolution on Haiti arising from last year’s conference was endorsed by the union’s annual general meeting and was then put forward to the national TUC where Frank spoke on its behalf - securing the backing of Congress delegates. “A motion that started at the grass roots ends up being broadcast on national TV and becomes national TUC policy. “That’s democracy in action,” he said. RMT North East Regional Council president Bob Potts welcomed delegates to Newcastle and gave us a history of the area, focussing on the region’s radical roots. A presentation from Northern Rail on the companies “ambassador” project, reaching out to black and ethnic minority communities in their area, sparked some interesting comments and discussion - not least the general secretary Bob Crow pointing out that if the company employed enough representative and highly-visible staff in the first place they would be perfectly placed to do all the outreach required to engage with all sections of the public. In his conference address, Bob warned that working people are under “unprecedented attack”. He talked about a recent union visit to New York as a guest of local trade unions and how rapacious speculators were using the collapse of the property market to buy up whole streets and blocks and drive the black and ethnic minority population out of their own communities, heightening racial tension. “In Wisconsin, workers rights are being ripped to shreds by the Republicans with six other states set to follow suit, again sharpening the attack on black and ethnic minority workers. “The anti-union noises coming out of the ConDem government mean that we have to be prepared for exactly the same kind of assault being imported from across the ocean,” he said. RMT president Alex Gordon reinforced the anti-BNP message with a reminder the fascists had suffered a major setback at the general election and had been wiped out in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham thanks to labour movement campaigning. “However they certainly have not gone away and we need to be gearing up to fight again in the May 5 local elections,” he said. Conference discussed a motion about Mumia Abu Jamal - a former Black Panther who has spent 29 years on death row in Pennsylvania. The motion - calling for support for his campaign for release from imprisonment- was carried unanimously with both mover and seconder explaining how his trial was a travesty of justice that has left him facing the death penalty for nearly three decades. Following an excellent presentation from Etienne Attala from RMT solicitors Thompsons updating delegates on the Equalities Act, and a comprehensive report back from Micky Thompson on behalf of the Executive, Glenroy Watson of Finsbury Park branch closed conference, homing in on the continuing campaign to recognise the legacy of slavery. “Whilst of course we recognise the evils of modern day slavery we must never forget the atrocities that were committed against African people and that the fight for recognition and reparations carries on today,” he said. BIGGEST EVER BLACK AND ETHNIC MINORITY CONFERENCE More than fifty delegates gathered in Newcastle recently for the union’s annual Black and Ethnic Minority conference.