Activist Luis Valentan battles from a Pasadena radio booth against wage theft, verbal abuse and other ways that immigrant day laborers are exploited. So does his masked wrestler alter ego.
Activist Luis Valentan battles from a Pasadena radio booth against wage theft, verbal abuse and other ways that immigrant day laborers are exploited. So does his masked wrestler alter ego.
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At a memorial to honor workers who have died during the pandemic, 600 handmade crosses each bearing the name of a fallen worker were arrayed on the lawn at Villa Parke in Pasadena. | T.A. Hendrickson/Boulevard Sentinel
Local labor leaders demand justice for workers who have borne the brunt of COVID-19
By Zach Goodwin
Most years, Workers’ Memorial Day, April 28, is a time to remember those killed or injured on the job and to call on politicians and employers to improve safety.
This year, at a local event by the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) and its community allies, the day took on an extra dimension. There was more loss and more grief because COVID-19 has disproportionately claimed the lives of lower-income, Latinx and Black people, many of them workers who could not work from home. This loss and grief fueled demands not only for safety, but for justice for ending the systemic exploitation of workers laid bare by the pandemic.