Posts tagged American Political Science Association
Political scientists confront real world politics dealing with hotel workers strike
September 5, 2023 // Last week, Unite Here Local 11 broadened its call for solidarity by asking all conventions to stay away from Los Angeles until the hotels meet their demands. The union and the hotels are far from reaching an agreement. That means political scientists likely won't be the last group to navigate their Los Angeles events in the midst of major labor action.
Los Angeles: hotel workers’ strike ignites backlash among academics
August 18, 2023 // Leaders of the association’s Latino caucus said they were “withdrawing” from this year’s annual conference “in solidarity with the union and hotel workers”. About one in 15 of the association’s members identify as “Latino or Hispanic American”, whereas around two out of three identify as “non-Hispanic White or Euro-American”, according to membership data as of August 2022. “We continue to stand in solidarity with the heavily Latina and immigrant hotel workers of Los Angeles and southern California,” said a statement posted to Twitter, now called X. Others also flocked to the platform to express their frustration, saying the decision to keep the meeting in Los Angeles leaves members in the lurch. “Just the idea of trying to find someplace else is overwhelming,” said Lindsay Mayka, the chair of Latin American studies at Colby College, who is choosing to skip this year’s conference because the hotel she had originally booked is on strike and she does not support the event. “It’s kind of being presented as, you know, everyone has to do what’s right for themselves.” Maria Hernandez, a spokesperson for the union, told the Guardian it contacted “hundreds of organizations and thousands of individuals” and confirmed the political science group was the largest it asked to cancel.