John,
When I think about Labor Day, I think about my grandpa.
He worked at Lone Star Steel in East Texas, where the heat was relentless, the hours were long, and the risks were high. Like millions of us Texans, he gave everything to keep this state running, working dangerous jobs for low pay, with little protection and no guarantees, just easily broken promises from a boss.
In 1957, everything came to a breaking point.
Workers at Lone Star Steel went on strike, demanding safer conditions, better wages, and dignity on the job. Management’s response? They fired 2,600 striking workers on the spot, cutting off their pay and leaving families wondering how they’d put food on the table.
What followed turned violent. Bombs were thrown. Pipelines were sabotaged. Texas Rangers were called in. For weeks, my grandpa and his coworkers stood on those picket lines, unpaid, unsure how long they could hold out but refusing to back down because they believed in dignity through solidarity.
John, and here we are, decades later, still fighting for the same things.
All my life, my generation has been sold cheap promises, and told to work hard and trust the system. Politicians hand us scraps and call it opportunity, only to sell off our futures to the highest bidding billionaire. We’re tired of fake leaders in this state ignoring the needs of working people.
We’re organizing across the state, passing policies that change lives city by city, while exposing the disconnect between what Texans actually want and what representatives tell us we’re supposed to want.
This Labor Day, I’m honoring my grandpa, and every Texan who’s fighting for fair treatment, by asking you to stand with us:
Because the fight for dignity didn’t end at Lone Star Steel. It continues in our neighborhoods, at our ballot boxes, and in every conversation about the future we’re building together.
Juntos,
Catina Voellinger
Executive Director
Ground Game Texas
Ground Game Texas is a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. Paid for by Ground Game Texas. Contributions to Ground Game Texas are not tax deductible.
PO Box 383 Manchaca, TX 78652-9998 | [email protected]
