Friends -

In the year 2021, the United States and the rest of the world face two very different political paths. On the one hand, there is a growing movement toward oligarchy in which a small number of incredibly wealthy and powerful people own and control a significant part of the economy and exert enormous influence over the lives of people in this country.

On the other hand, there is a growing movement of working people and young people who, in increasing numbers, are fighting for justice.

They are teachers demanding that schools are adequately funded and that their students get a quality education.

They are coal miners in Alabama who have been on strike for months after losing wages, holidays, paid time off, medical care and their pensions.

They are nurses on the picket line in Buffalo who are fighting for better wages and working conditions in the midst of a worldwide pandemic.

They are 1,400+ Kellog's factory workers in Michigan, Tennessee, Pennsylvania and Nebraska who have been on strike since earlier this month fighting back against a plan to give new workers lower wages and inferior benefits.

And there are 10,000 John Deere workers who are now on strike, who are fighting for decent wages, pensions and retirement and health care benefits.

Let us understand what is at stake here.

In 2020, John Deere's CEO's compensation exploded from $6 million annually to more than $15 million based on the company’s financial performance. According to the Des Moines Register, net income at the company was almost three times as much as during the same period the year before and revenue grew to more than $21 billion over those same six months.

Meanwhile, the company’s stock price is near its highest-ever value, nearly three times as much per share as at the start of the pandemic and it has paid billions to stockholders as dividends. And in 2021 the company has posted its highest profits ever. Ever!

And my message to John Deere and their CEO is simply: that’s a lot of money. What is the problem with paying your workers better wages and giving them better benefits as well?

Please don’t tell me it is because you cannot afford it.

These are workers who are putting in long, grueling days that are paying for fortunes amassed by the company’s executives and people who own and trade its stock.

"The company is reaping such rewards, but we’re fighting over crumbs here" is how Chris Laursen, a worker at John Deere put it.

And these are workers who are not only striking for themselves and their co-workers, but workers who very clearly realize that the whole world is watching the outcome of this fight and realize that their success will lead to more victories for working people across the country.

So this fight is absolutely critical for us to pay attention to and engage in.

Yes, we must focus on the fight over the reconciliation bill in Washington, D.C. That is enormously important.

But we also must be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. Because the truth is, everything is connected to everything and it is the often unnoticed struggles of the working class in communities across the country that ultimately determine the quality of wages, benefits and the ability to retire with dignity in seemingly unconnected jobs and industries.

So today, I want to ask you to do something important:

Please make a $2.70 contribution to support the organizing efforts of John Deere and Kellogg's workers who are on strike right now. 100% of your donation will be distributed to strike funds supporting the workers.

We cannot have a moral society or a strong economy when so few have so much, and so many have so little. That's the struggle workers are increasingly engaging in all across this country.

It is critical we support their struggle.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders

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