North Shore Federation of Labor in the News

What Does the Media Say About Us?

A lot! Read on.

"Most politicians cherish the AFL-CIO's blessing because it comes with resources. In 2001, the group endorsed Campbell in both the primary and the general elections. Union members made 80,000 phone calls for her candidacy... mailed about 80,000 pieces of campaign literature and sent 800 union members door-to-door stumping for her."
-- Cleveland Plain Dealer, September 15, 2005

"If Sam Miller and Albert Ratner pay for the gas of Cleveland politics, [The Cleveland AFL-CIO] owns the engine. Only [they] can muster the phone banks and foot soldiers -- sending out 500 volunteers at a time -- to maintain the county's one-party system. If you want to be someone in Democratic politics, you have to be with [them]."
-- Cleveland Scene, July 14, 2004

"John Ryan has made [the Cleveland AFL-CIO's] political operation, based on mobilizing hundreds of volunteers, into a local powerhouse and a model for the country. The national AFL-CIO only endorsed Kerry on Feb. 19; the Cleveland AFL-CIO almost immediately began calling and sending mailings to members on behalf of Kerry. On the weekend before the primary election, hundreds of union volunteers took part in two different neighborhood walks -- one a nonpartisan effort to encourage people to vote, the other a door-to-door effort on behalf of Kerry, [County Commissioner Candidate Tim] Hagan and key national and local issues, including an arts- and environment-oriented economic development bond issue."-- Salon.com, March 1, 2004

" The Cleveland AFL-CIO Federation of Labor... officially agreed to support the proposed property tax for arts and economic development... unions will be spreading [the message] through their phone banks, canvassers and 50,000 letters sent out today to their members."-- Cleveland Plain Dealer, February 23, 2004

" Over the last several years, the AFL has reestablished its mojo by becoming one of the best organized and most sophisticated political groups in the county, delivering votes with muscle that few operations can match."-- Cleveland Scene, July 12, 2001

In 2001, the community came together to support Cleveland school children, to pass a bond and levy issue to rebuild Cleveland Municipal schools. At the start of the campaign, the polls had us losing --- big time. The Cleveland AFL-CIO was the first group to get behind the levy, pushing it with an aggressive grass-roots campaign. Below are some of the comments made by media during and after the campaign:

"The strong labor support for Issue 14...is unprecedented..."

Plain Dealer, 'Unions back bond issue for schools in Cleveland: it's about kids, not mayor, leader says,' April 12, 2001.

"The committee [Issue 14] is also relying on the Cleveland AFL-CIO Federation of Labor to reach the city's 42,000 union members on both sides of the Cuyahoga River..."
Plain Dealer, 'Schools CEO seen as asset for bonds: Polls tell White to stay off issue,' April 17, 2001.

"The [Issue 14] campaign has garnered weighty support, including from the Cleveland AFL-CIO Federation of Labor..."
Plain Dealer, "Crunch time for schools campaign," May 6, 2001.

"The Cleveland schools bond issue and levy succeeded yesterday by playing to its strengths, targeting East Side residents and union households across the city...more surprisingly was the issue's popularity on the West Side, where an intensive campaign by organized labor helped neutralize a long-standing sentiment in some neighborhoods...the AFL-CIO, which ran a largely separate operation, made 50,000 phone calls to union households, distributed flyers at rallies, canvassed selected neighborhoods and registered 1,000 voters throughout the city."
Plain Dealer, "Labor helps deliver a solid 'yes,' May 9, 2001.

"Organized labor under the leadership of John Ryan, showed its electoral savvy in impressive ways..."
Plain Dealer, "A win for kids: Cleveland voters rise to the occasion and pass the bond issue to rebuild city schools," May 9, 2001.

"Much of the credit for the victory should go to organized labor...It wasn't that they were able to turn out so many voters for the levy, what they were able to do was to keep a head of steam from getting built up against it. The voters who usually vote 'no' stayed home on Tuesday..."
City News, "Issue 14 passes," May 10-May 16, 2001.

"Among the supporters of about 250 officials' teachers, parents and students was an intensive campaign by AFL-CIO Federation of Labor...that printed over twenty thousand special edition copies to be distributed door-to-door, throughout the neighborhood and endorsed the process from the start."
Crusader Urban News, "Thanks $380 million," May 23, 2001.

"...one fact stands out above all others: Organized labor is back. If the AFL-CIO can reprise the role the organization played in the Issue 14 campaign in the 2002 elections, labor will certainly be a significant factor in local mayoral and state elections next year."
Call and Post, "The thrill of victory is shared," May 10,2001.