In an otherwise informative article on the vote by the Sequim City Council to reject Proposition 1 and Proposition 2, anti-union measures, I was misquoted.
I did not say that the city council “railroaded” these measures with their unanimous vote against them.
I said I was proud of the city council for standing up against the rightwing Freedom Foundation as it seeks to railroad them into law in Sequim.
The city commissioners of Shelton, too, voted unanimously against identical efforts to railroad these measures into law.
Railroading is a way of life for these bullies. They enjoy unlimited “dark money” from the billionaire Koch Brothers of Kansas. Their crony, Shawn Newman, is the lawyer in a lawsuit against Sequim seeking to force Proposition 1 and Proposition 2 onto the November ballot.
Yes, I am very proud that our city council defended a precious right that workers fought for and sometimes died to win: the right to join a union and to bargain with their employer.
Millions of workers in our country enjoy living wages, health care, paid vacations, defined pensions, the right to grieve against arrogant and unfair corporate bosses because of unions.
The minions of greed are determined to strip us of these rights, to force all workers to toil at starvation wages. They wrap themselves in deceitful phrases — “freedom” and “Right to Work” — as they pick our pockets and laugh all the way to the bank.
Tim Wheeler
Sequim