Don't Miss the Progressive Labor Summit With an Impressive Array of Local Leaders and Activists

Saturday, April 17th from 9:00 to 5:00 

By Jim Miller

What should a progressive San Diego, a progressive California look like Post-COVID?  That is the central question this year’s Progressive Labor Summit will attempt to answer.  With panels featuring a wide array of local labor, community, and environmental activists along with local and statewide political leaders, it promises to be an interesting afternoon.  

Attendees will learn about front line workers’ struggles, organizing in the gig economy, equity in education, and efforts to improve health care and housing for working San Diegans.  One key conversation will include Mayor Todd Gloria and Supervisor Nathan Fletcher discussing what a regional progressive vision should entail.  There will also be a talk by Daraka Larimore-Hall, the Vice Chair of the California Democratic Party on how to democratize the state party.  

Also during the plenary session is a must-see panel on the effort to pass an Extreme Wealth Tax in California with Tristan Brown of the California Federation of Teachers, Labor Historian Fred Glass, Assemblymember Alex Lee, and prominent UC Berkeley economist Emmanuel Saez along with moderator and author David Dayen.  You can also join yours truly as I take part in a breakout session panel on the Green New Deal and a Just Transition.  

All in all, this year’s summit is an important event for San Diego progressives.  As Lucas O’Connor of the Progressive Labor Alliance notes, the Summit is a way for activists and other interested parties “to learn from and connect with experts from local, state, and national levels working on a broad range of issues we have to tackle as we build a better, stronger post-COVID economy.  By building common cause across the whole array of opportunities before us, we can get the results that this moment and our rising Democratic majority demand.”  

Buy tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/progressive-labor-summit-2021-tickets-145337192455

For a complete breakdown of the summit and list of all the speakers and panels see below: 

Building the Post-COVID Economy

The Progressive Labor Summit is a one-day event, bringing together members of the San Diego Labor community with left-of-center activists and leaders to build stronger understanding, knowledge, skills, and partnerships in tackling the broader social challenges we are facing today.

Within the context of the current political climate, it is more important than ever that we are able to build strong, authentic relationships that allow us to move forward together in solidarity, as we strive towards greater justice for the communities we serve and represent. While many of us have collaborated and interacted tangentially - and are even members of both organized Labor and the Democratic Party - the new political landscape requires us to be more intentional and strategic than ever in order to create the changes we seek.

The fourth annual summit will occur online and help us strengthen our foundation for vital progressive work.

***Scholarships are available. Please email info@progressivelaboralliance.org to request a scholarship for the Progressive Labor Summit 2021.***

Program - Plenary Session 9:00 

9:15: We Are The Union: Workers on the Front Line • Hear directly from workers who have been on the frontlines throughout the pandemic about the changes on the job and the impacts on their lives. Moderator: Brigette Browning

10:00: Defining a Regional Progressive Vision • The two highest ranking local elected officials discuss their vision for taking over from Republicans and implementing a progressive, pro-worker approach to governing. Panelists: Nathan Fletcher and Todd Gloria; Moderator: Will Rodriguez-Kennedy

11:00: Prop 22: What’s Next? • Proposition 22 was approved by voters in November, implementing significant changes to labor law around independent contractors and app-based work. Where do we go from here? Panelists: Alvaro Bolainez, Veena Dubal, Lorena Gonzalez, Kristin Lynch; Moderator: Kim Kelly

12:00: What Do We Do With All These Billionaires?: Inequality in the Wake of COVID •The decades-long trend towards concentrated wealth and income inequality has been dramatically accelerated during the pandemic, and all three rounds of federal relief have included major investments in attempting to address this growing gap. How do we approach a more equitable and progressive tax structure to ensure more of the wealth generated by workers returns to benefit them? Panelists: Tristan Brown, Fred Glass, Alex Lee, Emmanuel Saez; Moderator: David Dayen

1:00: How Labor Advocacy Becomes Workers Rights • Elected officials get the attention, but what is it like at the staff level to turn labor advocacy into policy advancing workers' rights? High-level legislative staff from the State Senate, Assembly, County, and City discuss how the work gets done. Panelists: Paola Avila, Cesar Diaz, Shubhangi Domokos, Paul Worlie; Moderator: Caitlin Vega

1:45: Party for the People • California Democratic Party Vice-Chair Daraka Larimore-Hall discusses democratizing the California Democratic Party structure, and strategies to achieve more progressive Democratic majorities throughout the state.

2:15: Breakouts - Session 1

The Lines that Bind: San Diego Redistricting • A delayed census means that this decade's redistricting process likely will not be completed until shortly before the 2022 primary. What's at stake for voters and how can community members get involved in the process to advocate for fair, representative districts? Panelists: Evan McLaughlin, Diana Ross, Lori Shellenberger, jean-huy Tran; Moderator: Satomi Rash-Zeigler

All Policy is Education Policy: What’s Needed For True Equity in Education? • The pandemic has further highlighted that education policy goes well beyond the classroom, including access to broadband and affordable housing, immigration policy, health and hunger services, and law enforcement reform. What does a holistic approach to education policy look like, for teachers and support staff, students, parents, and the community as a whole? Panelists: Paul Khalid Alexander, Ruby Baker, Kisha Borden; Moderator: Roberto Alcantar

Making 💩 Work: Water, RTP, and Infrastructure • From potholes and bridges to failing pipes and polluted beaches, the San Diego region is facing billions in critical infrastructure needs. At the same time, the region needs generational investment in transportation infrastructure to serve a growing population and mandated climate benchmarks. What do we need, how will we pay for it, and who will build it? Panelists: Ismahan Abdullahi, Murtaza Baxamusa, Catherine Blakespear, Matt O'Malley, Jack Shu; Moderator: Bernadette Butkiewicz

The Rent is Too Damn High: Housing is a Human Right • Our housing crisis remains unsolved at the federal, state, and local levels, and the lack of accessible housing is disrupting our communities and workforce. What is the path forward to provide dignified, affordable, and stable housing to all? Panelists: Marcus Bush, Molly Chase, Sean Elo-Rivera, Scott Littlehale; Moderator: Rachel Laing

Heckuva Job, Tony: The Collapse of the Right in San Diego • Recent years have seen a dramatic shift countywide towards Democrats in voter registration and performance. What's driven this change, and where is it heading? Panelists: Ryan Clumpner, Corinna Contreras, Lorena Gonzalez, Lucas O'Connor; Moderator: Carol Kim

3:15: Breakouts - Session 2

Take This Job and Organize It: Growing the Labor Movement Post-Pandemic • The recent pandemic has created pressures in the workplace unseen in living memory, at the same time that approval ratings for labor unions have hit levels not seen in decades. As we head back to work, what lessons and opportunities can we apply to growing the labor movement across multiple sectors? Panelists: Brigette Browning, Mikey Knab, Todd Walters; Moderator: Evan Sutton

Making San Diego Work For All: Equity in Civil Service • As leadership changes at the City and County levels - and public workers seek to recover from a decade of attacks on their livelihoods - how do we make sure that local government jobs remain pathways to the middle class for all of San Diego's diverse communities? Panelists: Rodney Fowler, Crystal Irving, Monica Montgomery Steppe, Nora Vargas, Michael Zucchet; Moderator: Kyra Greene

Keeping the New Deal in the “Green New Deal:” Making a Just Transition Real • The Green New Deal has become a major national conversation, and recently a coalition of labor and environmental activists helped win passage of the PRO Act in the House of Representatives. How do we forge the alliances and innovative policy solutions to ensure we sustain our skilled and trained union workforce as we invest in the clean technology and climate mitigation efforts necessary in the face of climate disaster? Panelists: Sean Ellis, Maleeka Marsden, Jim Miller, Steve Padilla, Chris Ward; Moderator: Rick Bates

The Future of Healthcare • The COVID-19 pandemic shone a bright light on long-standing challenges within our healthcare system, and accelerated trends that have been coming for years. What have we learned about staffing levels, supply chains, telehealth, and what patients need going forward? Panelists: Michael Avant, Terry Bunting, Melissa Hawthorne-Campos, Eric Robles; Moderator: Sara Flocks

The Call is Coming From Inside the House: Navigating an All-Dem San Diego • The rapid voting shift to the left has created a major influx of Democrats in elected office. How are the dynamics of advocacy changing as we shift from the opposition to majorities and super-majorities? Panelists: Dave Lagstein, Eva Posner, Christian Ramirez, Christopher R. Wilson; Moderator: Gretchen Newsom

4:15: Conclusion

Buy tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/progressive-labor-summit-2021-tickets-145337192455