San Diego saw many protests under the “Workers Over Billionaires” initiative this Labor Day, as demonstrators across the county demanded better investment in essential services over corporate wealth accumulation. According to the Times of San Diego, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council coordinated the local demonstrations. Events spanned from downtown San Diego to locations like La Jolla and Escondido, advocating for increased funding in public sectors, including schools and healthcare.
As per the details shared by NBC San Diego, the rallies also carried the historical echo of the “Which Side Are You On?” protest song from the 1930s’ labor struggles. The energetic crowds used this day to pose a blatant challenge to the current administration’s policies, with the organizer Bridgette Browning insisting there’s no neutral stance, stating, “Either you stand with the working class or you enable the billionaires and politicians who are gutting our democracy and hoarding the wealth workers create.”
Reflecting on the SEIU’s nationwide Solidarity Season initiative, this year’s Labor Day theme, “Families First, Not Billionaires,” strikes at the heart of activists’ contentions. The SEIU website emphasizes the breadth of demands, from reversing Medicaid cuts to ending “ICE profiteering,” and from advocating for safety in every community to taxing the billionaires. The SEIU’s vocal stance marks a climactic moment in the ongoing fight for labor rights, building off previous actions like the Medicaid Week of Action and the Families First National Day of Action…