Culinary Union to host kick-off event and canvass launch with American Federation of Teachers

ONLINE  / TWEET

MEDIA ADVISORY FOR: 

Thursday, October 1, 2020 at 9am and 11am 

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Bethany Khan: bkhan@culinaryunion226.org ▪ (702) 387-7088

Culinary Union to host kick-off event and canvass launch with American Federation of Teachers 

Las Vegas, NV -  The Culinary Union will be joined by the American Federation of Teachers on Thursday, October 1, 2020 for a virtual kick-off event at 9am Pacific and canvass launch at 11am Pacific at the Culinary Union HQ.

WHO:

*D. Taylor, President of UNITE HERE

*Randi Weingarten, President of American Federation of Teachers

*Geoconda Argüello-Kline, Secretary-Treasurer for Culinary Union

*Fedrick Ingram, Secretary-Treasurer of the American Federation of Teachers 

*Evelyn DeJesus, Executive Vice-President of American Federation of Teachers

*200 Culinary Union political canvassers

WHEN: THURSDAY, October 1, 2020 at 9:00am and 11:00am Pacific

MEDIA RSVP: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNfPB6R6xwaV5-DhTvEKWXv0GacpcF5QqB8gyoE0rH10jO3A/viewform 

9:00am: Culinary Union virtual kick-off event with political canvassers. D., Randi, Geoconda, Fedrick, and Evelyn will speak with political canvassers ahead of them going out into Las Vegas neighborhoods to mobilize voters. 

PUBLIC LIVESTREAM: www.Facebook.com/Culinary226 

11:00am: Canvass team to launch out of the Culinary Union parking lot (1630 South Commerce Street Las Vegas, Nevada 89102). 

AFT will hand out box lunches and children books in English and Spanish to Culinary Union members before they head out for a day of canvassing and voter activation. Masks are required. Social distance will be enforced. Canvassers will queue for a drive-through pickup of turf, supplies, lunch, and books in the parking lot. 

WHY: The Culinary Union, the strongest force in the Battle Born state, is mobilizing tens of thousands of hospitality workers to elect candidates who will fight for our families.

The Culinary and Bartenders Unions have proudly endorsed Joe Biden as the next President of the United States of America and Kamala Harris as the next Vice President of the United States of America. The Culinary Union endorsement guide is here. 

The Culinary Union’s political program for the 2020 General Election, which is responsive to the COVID-19 global pandemic, began on August 1, 2020 and is (and will continue to be) the largest in the state. The battle-tested political program has over 200 hospitality workers canvassing and making phone calls to get out the vote in Reno and Las Vegas. 

As the only organization with canvassers in the streets knocking on doors, talking to voters, and getting out the vote for Biden/Harris, the Culinary Union is committed to defeating Trump on Election Day in Nevada.  

Every political effort draws from the Culinary Union’s 85-years of rich knowledge of effective voter contact, which is rooted in the principle of working people talking to each other about the importance of building power through voting.  

“Donald Trump is a threat to the livelihoods of workers and our families,” said Geoconda Argüello-Kline, Secretary-Treasurer for the Culinary Union. “We are fighting to take back our country and we will deliver Nevada for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and candidates who will fight to protect Nevadans.”

“Elections are always about choices, but this is the most consequential choice of our lifetimes,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. “Four more years of Trump is an existential threat to the American way of life. This is a five alarm fire – Trump has threatened the peaceful transition of power and has torched our rights and freedoms for cynical political gain, while trying to gut healthcare, defund public education and erode good union jobs, while further enriching the rich. Standing still—and staying silent—is not an option. While the president divides and destroys, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will restore dignity and bring the nation together so working people can realize the promise of America. They will fund schools and healthcare, restore voting rights, strengthen labor rights and fight to end racism and address climate change. Those are the stakes and that's why it's so urgent we do everything to get out the vote in Nevada and across the nation." 

ABOUT CULINARY UNION:

Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of the casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip and in Downtown Las Vegas. UNITE HERE represents 300,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America. 

The Culinary Union, through the Culinary Health Fund, is one of the largest healthcare consumers in the state. The Culinary Health Fund is sponsored by the Culinary Union and Las Vegas-area employers. It provides health insurance coverage for over 145,000 Nevadans, the Culinary Union’s members and their dependents.  

The Culinary Union is Nevada’s largest Black/AAPI/immigrant organization with members who come from 178 countries and speak over 40 different languages. We are proud to have helped over 18,000 immigrants become American citizens and new voters since 2001 through our affiliate, The Citizenship Project. 

The Culinary Union has a diverse membership -- approximately 55% women, 54% Latinx, 19% White, 15% Asian, 10% Black, and less than 1% Indigenous Peoples — and consists of guest room attendants, cocktail and food servers, porters, bellmen, cooks, bartenders, laundry and kitchen workers. The Culinary Union has been fighting for fair wages, job security, and good health benefits for workers in Nevada for 85 years.

CulinaryUnion226.org / @Culinary226  

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