Representative John Lewis brought convention delegates to their feet as he gave a rousing call to arms for union men and women

John Lewis Issues a Call to Action

Representative John Lewis brought convention delegates to their feet as he gave a rousing call to arms for union men and women. The civil rights pioneer went back to his roots as a child in rural Alabama to bring a lesson to the convention.

”I asked my parents, ‘Why segregation? Why racial discrimination?’ And they would say, ‘That’s the way it is. Don’t get in the way. Don’t get in trouble.’ But, I was deeply inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I got in the way. I got in trouble. It’s time for unions and organized labor in America to get in the way, to get in trouble.”

Calling the upcoming election critical to the future of the country, Lewis urged organized labor to make a major push to mobilize voters.

”The people in leadership are mean, just vicious and mean,” said Lewis. “They go to bed mean, they dream mean, and they get up mean. And, they don’t care nothing about working people. As a nation, we can do better and must do better.”



As a finale to the convention, delegates were treated to musical selections and a multimedia presentation from The Forgotten, a jazz opera set in the 1930s.

The Forgotten Ends the Convention With a Bang

As a finale to the convention, delegates were treated to musical selections and a multimedia presentation from The Forgotten, a jazz opera set in the 1930s which tells the story of Lewis Bradford, a minister and radio host with a vision of "labor peace" who goes to work at the yet-to-be organized Ford Motor Company.

Author/composer Steve Jones uncovers the mystery surrounding Bradford's death through a sequence of jazz-based songs and the narrative of Bradford's widow, Ella.

Dedicated to the thousands of workers who overcame racial divisions, red-baiting, and company thugs to build a union, Forgotten bursts onto the stage in a passionate display of musical virtuosity and good old-fashioned storytelling.