(Bloomberg Opinion) As the nation reflects on the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Massacre, in which a White mob razed a prosperous Black community and killed many of its inhabitants, conversations have focused on the economic costs of such racial violence.
The strike began after the worker s contracts expired and negotiations for a new contract failed.
The meeting s keynote speaker, International UMWA President Cecil Roberts, began his speech by talking about Workers Memorial Day and the dangers of being a coal miner. Most of you may not be aware that today is Workers Memorial Day, said Roberts. [It] is celebrated by every [American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations] (AFL-CIO) union in the United States of America every April, the 28th. Today, before you get home tonight and put your head on your pillow, another worker somewhere in this country will be killed on the job. Fourteen workers every single day day in the United States, but that s not all. I want you to listen to this number every year; somewhere between 50 and 60,000 workers die from occupational illnesses like black lung, brown lung, white lung, cancer. They re dying because they went to work, and one of the issues that we know presents itse