PEP, June 2007: Somos el Futuro

20 years advocating for Latinos

By ALFREDO ALVARADO

More than 500 political activists, labor leaders and elected officials gathered in Albany during the weekend of April 27 for the 20th Annual Somos el Futuro Conference. “This is a historic milestone for Hispanics in the state of New York,” said conference chairman and Bronx Assembly member Peter M. Rivera. “This conference is a continuation of the important work that began two decades ago in an effort to empower Hispanics.”

The New York State Assembly/Senate Puerto Rican/Hispanic Task Force sponsors the annual three-day summit in downtown Albany.

In addition to participating in the weekend of workshops on education, health care and immigration, conference organizers honored union activists and the labor movement at the traditional Saturday morning labor breakfast.

“It was because of organized labor that my family was able to progress. And it was because of labor that my family has health benefits and good wages,” said Aldolfo Carrión Jr., the Bronx borough president at the morning event. “Organized labor is what stands between us and poverty,” said New York City Comptroller William C.Thompson. “Today labor is the guardian of everyone who has no one to protect them,” said Rivera.

Assembly member José Peralta called for support of a fair trade initiative with labor and human rights and also for universal health coverage at the breakfast meeting.

At the labor breakfast, sponsored by the New York City Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, Santos Crespo, executive vice president of Local 372, and Joe Nazario, secretary-treasurer of SSEU Local 371, were honored for their years of service to the union movement.

Guest speaker Rigo Valdez, national coordinator of the United Food and Commercial Workers’ Smithfield Campaign, spoke about the dreadful working conditions and the organizing campaign at the Smithfield packing plant in North Carolina. The plant is the world’s largest hog slaughter and processing facility. According to Valdez, the National Labor Relations Board has repeatedly found Smithfield guilty of using threats, intimidation and violence against workers trying to organize.

The evening gala on Saturday night featured keynote addresses by Gov. Eliot Spitzer and Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo stressed housing and banking as he reminded everyone that there is more work to do in the fight against discrimination. “Not only is it not ethical or moral, but it is against the law,” he said.

Like Cuomo, Spitzer spoke of all of the hard work ahead, especially in health care and education. “We will not succeed if the 41 percent graduation rate does not increase year after year,” he said.

Spitzer also emphasized the necessity of political activism and the need to improve the poor showing at the polls. “Only 51 percent are registered, and only some 30 percent vote,” Spitzer said. “We have to get much more active in the political process.”