LNS Spotlight:

Talia Crawford

Each issue we feature a member of the Labor Network for Sustainability network.

Talia Crawford based out of NYC started organizing transit riders in 2021 at Tri-State Transportation Campaign (TSTC). One of the reasons why she joined the transit equity movement and TSTC was because she grew up in NYC and never felt the need to get a driver's license. But she knows that in other parts of her city and the region that public transportation isn’t always reliable, accessible, or affordable. For the past four years she has enjoyed organizing bus riders in NJ and Westchester County to join the transit justice movement by challenging riders to think about community based solutions since their experiences are invaluable but often overlooked and getting them more involved in decision making processes to elevate the voice of the transit rider.

TSTC joined the Transit Riders United States Together (TRUST) network which is fiscally sponsored by LNS, and Talia later became one of the Co-Coordinators. TRUST is a national network and has a membership of 30+ rider unions and ally organizations from across the country in 21 states. Every month, TRUST holds a Meeting of the Whole which aims to share transit rider organizing strategies and tactics through peer led panels and workshops, topics have ranged from pandemic organizing, rider-driver solidarity, bus network redesigns, safety and transit, and more. The network has been able to connect 100+ organizers in the transit justice movement which has helped compare successful approaches to similar issues in different geographical areas. In 2022, Talia worked with TransitCenter to help coordinate the in-person National Transit Advocacy Convening in Washington DC which brought together many of the TRUST members in real life for the first time.

Editor Jeremy Brecher,
Senior Strategic Advisor, LNS Co-Founder

In a drama or a war, there is a critical point where protagonist and antagonist meet and the battle has been joined. That point has arrived as MAGA and those defending society against MAGA have now come into direct contact in the public arena. This can be seen in the confrontation of ICE agents, dressed and acting like storm troopers, and nonviolently resisting communities in Los Angeles. And it can be seen in the contrast so often drawn between Trump’s puny military birthday parade and the historic No Kings Day actions by five million people at more than two thousand locations around the country. As the New York Times lead headline put it June 15, “Military Might, Protest Power: Two Visions of U.S. Take to the Streets.”

Trump appears to be on the offensive, as illustrated by his sending federalized National Guards and Marines into Los Angeles and sending US bombers to attack Iran. But Trump’s escalations are less a sign of strength than a response to his failures, contradictions, loss of public support, and fracturing base.

It’s a well-known maxim that when politicians or countries are losing that they are likely to escalate. As Senator Alex Padilla put it after he was handcuffed, thrown to the ground, and arrested by Ice agents,

"When Mr. Trump began to face a groundswell of criticism a few weeks ago for      his unpopular Medicaid cuts, failed tariff wars and embarrassing public breakup with a billionaire adviser, I suspected that it wouldn’t be long before he broke out the same tired anti-immigrant tactics to distract the public. Raids intensified, detentions skyrocketed, and Mr. Trump’s narrative of crisis escalated in the hopes of diverting attention from his political failures." https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/opinion/alex-padilla-removal-trump.html

The same desire to divert attention from his political failures no doubt provides a similar motivation for Trump’s illegal war against Iran.

As you will see below, the movement-based opposition to the MAGA assault is unrelenting. Resistance from immigrant communities and their supporters is slowing the illegal and unconstitutional arrests and deportations.  And future days of action are scheduled in waves throughout the summer.  

ICE Assaulting Workers and Trade Unionists in Los Angeles

Unions and Millions of Participants Join “No Kings Day”

Coming Action Attractions!

LA Teachers Win Green Healthy Schools and Climate Education

Young Worker Training

Worker Rights in Freefall Worldwide

Workers Fight for State Heat Rules

Bird Flu Threatens Workers

British Unions Holding “Year of Climate Action”

Defending Society Against the MAGA Assault

Photo by Bill Essayli

On June 6, 2025, during an ICE raid, David Huerta, President of the Service Employees International Union-United Service Workers West, was injured, arrested, and charged with felony conspiracy to impede an officer. He was released from custody June 9 in the face of rapidly organized protests in more than 20 cities nationwide. California governor Gavin Newsom said, "David Huerta is a respected leader, a patriot, and an advocate for working people. No one should ever be harmed for witnessing government action." In the face of rapid response protests in more than 20 cities around the country, Huerta was released from custody June 9, but still faces criminal charges. Huerta said,

"What happened to me is not about me; This is about something much bigger. This is about how we as a community stand together and resist the injustice that’s happening. Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals. We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice. This is injustice. And we all have to stand on the right side of justice."

Raids by masked, armed, unidentified persons claiming to be federal agents continue throughout the Los Angeles area and the rest of the country. According to Ice itself, however, state and local sanctuary policies, rapid response networks, and community resistance is seriously impeding the effectiveness of this reign of terror.  

For LNS statement on ICE raids and arrests: 
https://www.labor4sustainability.org/articles/stop-the-ice-raids-free-david-huerta/

Photo by Dean Moses

On June 14, No Kings Day actions were held in more than 2000 locations – reputed to be the most widespread one-day protests in US history. A variety of estimates indicate five million participants nationwide, including 100,000 in Philadelphia and 75,000 in Chicago. Pentland, Michigan, population 800, had 400 participants.

The No Kings Day of Defiance was organized to reject authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarization of the country's democracy.  

National unions partnering in the day of action included AFGE, APWU, CWA, IFPTE, and SEIU, as well as many local unions and labor-aligned groups.

Photo by Rodríguez Carrillo/Getty Images

July 17 – “Good Trouble Lives On”

On July 17th, the fifth anniversary of the passing of civil rights leader and US Representative John Lewis, rallies, community events, press conferences, and candlelight vigils will be held around the country to demand an end to:

• The extreme crackdown on our civil rights by the Trump administration, from our right to vote to our right to protest and free speech. 
• The attacks on black and brown Americans, immigrants, trans people, and other communities.
• The slashing of programs that working people rely on, including Medicaid, SNAP, and Social Security.

“Whether you're outraged by attacks on voting rights, the gutting of essential services, disappearance of our neighbors, or the assault on free speech and our right to protest—this movement is for you.”

For more: https://goodtroubleliveson.org 

To host an event: https://www.mobilize.us/john-lewis-actions/c/john-lewis-good-trouble-day/event/create/ 

September 1 -- Labor Day 2025

The unions and allies who initiated this year’s big May Day actions are calling for actions around the country to demand “a world that works for all of us.”  

"The billionaires continue to wage a war on working people, with their cronies in the administration, ICE and law enforcement backing up their attacks. This Labor Day we will continue to stand strong, fighting for public schools over private profits, healthcare over hedge funds, shared prosperity over billionaire-bought politics. 

"Working people built this nation and we know how to take care of each other. We won’t back down—we will never stop fighting for our families and the rights and freedoms that ensure access to opportunity and a better life for all Americans. The Billionaire's time is up.

"On September 1st we will continue the movement we launched together on May 1st, standing in solidarity with all our communities under attack and fighting for real wins for all our people. 

"In thousands of communities around the country we encourage you to take a stand on Labor Day. On the streets, outside the offices of the corporate criminals who are behind the attacks on our freedoms and at congressional offices. Together we will demand a world that works for all of us."

Their demands:

• Stop the billionaire takeover and rampant corruption of the Trump administration.
  Protect and defend Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs for working people.
• Fully funded schools, and healthcare and housing for all.
• Stop the attacks on immigrants, Black, indigenous, trans people, and all our communities.
• Invest in people not wars.

To host an event: https://www.mobilize.us/mayday/c/solidarity-september/event/create/ 

To download the host toolkit: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ih3zwZAP7cswUekdVWOw63BG2_ROTb-9EYEF-14f4Vs/edit?usp=sharin

The United Teachers of Los Angeles recently won pioneering climate demands in their contract with the Los Angeles United School District. They include:

• Providing EV charging stations for all schools and free Metro passes for all students.
• Building out solar energy on District land using a skilled and trained workforce.
• Electrifying its fleet by 2040.
• Establishing a Climate Literacy Task Force that will develop and implement curricula that “infuses climate literacy with a racial justice lens.”
• Creating internships for students to “obtain internships and apprenticeships for green jobs.”
• Developing Career Technical Education opportunities in fields that “support green energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

Each school shall have a stipended “Climate Champion” to “develop, support, and promote the implementation of climate change education across all curricular areas.”

To see the full proposals: https://utla.net/app/uploads/2025/02/2025_02_18_UTLA_Proposals.pdf 

In early June, LNS participated in the Labor Research and Action Network (LRAN) conference at Rutgers University in New Jersey. Our Young Worker Organizer, Martina Manicastri, presented on a panel entitled "Challenges and Strategies for Worker-led Energy Transition and Young Worker Organizing" alongside Jessie Hammerling, Co-Director, of the Green Economy Program at UC Berkeley Labor Center, Batul Hassan, Labor Director at the Climate & Community Institute, and Nikki Luke, Assistant Professor of Human Geography in the Geography and Sustainability Department at the University of Tennessee.

Martina shared findings from our young worker report, "Earth is a Hot Shop," and from her experience in running our Young Worker Training Program. The presentation spoke to the ambitions of young workers in the labor-climate movement who care deeply about cross-movement intersections, and who yearn for class-struggle unionism. She also discussed the need for greater opportunities for democratic participation in the labor movement and the importance of comprehensive political education in the fight for a just transition. 

This year, LRAN prioritized the experiences of migrant workers, federal workers, and southern workers, all of whom are facing both old and newfound challenges under the Trump administration. The conference echoed national calls for solidarity within the labor movement and with communities being directly attacked by the state. 

If you want to learn more about the LNS Young Workers Program, please contact our Young Worker Organizer and program instructor Martina Manicastri at [email protected]."

For the Young Workers Project Report “Earth Is a Hot Shop: Findings of the Young Workers Listening Project”: https://www.labor4sustainability.org/files/YWREPORT2025.pdf 

For more on the LNS Young Worker Project: https://www.labor4sustainability.org/ywlp/ywlp-in-depth/ ]

A detailed review of worker rights around the world found that worker rights are in “freefall” across every continent. The 2025 Global Rights Index released by the International Trade Union Confederation, found that workers’ rights and democracy around the world are often under attack by “far-right politicians and their unelected billionaire backers.” Whether it’s Donald Trump and Elon Musk in the US or Javier Milei and Eduardo Eurnekian in Argentina, “we see the same playbook of unfairness and authoritarianism in action around the world.”

In the US, the index found “the Donald Trump administration has taken a wrecking ball to the collective labor rights of workers and brought anti-union billionaires into the heart of policymaking.”

For the full report: https://www.ituc-csi.org/global-rights-index 

Image by Rolling Stone

Four billion people, about half the world’s population, experienced at least one extra month of extreme heat due to human-caused climate change from May 2024 to May 2025, scientists say. The extreme heat caused illness, death, crop losses, and strained energy and healthcare systems, according to the analysis from World Weather Attribution, Climate Central and the Red Cross.

Source: AP News: 4 billion people endured extra month of extreme heat due to climate change, experts say | AP News
 
NOAA’s forecast for summer 2025 calls for hotter than normal temperatures from coast to coast.

“Model guidance was overwhelmingly above normal across the U.S. and most of Alaska for the upcoming summer season," Johnna Infanti, meteorologist for NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center told USA Today.

Source: https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/summer-2025-forecast-calls-for-overwhelmingly-above-normal-heat-starting-in-june/ar-AA1FPuWO 

Photo Credit: Green Latinos

Republicans in Congress are taking aim at efforts to protect workers from extreme heat. The target is a rule proposed by the Biden administration. In March, Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Michigan), chair of the House Education and Workforce Committee, sent a letter to newly confirmed Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer calling for the Department of Labor (DOL) to withdraw from the rule.

Efforts are underway to establish state heat protections for workers. A New Mexico coalition is stressing an urgent need for the state to adopt the strongest possible heat risk standards for indoor and outdoor workers. Draft standards have been issued by the New Mexico Environment Department. They would require a Heat Injury Protection Plan; a Heat Exposure Assessment; acclimatization; hydrating fluids; regular rest breaks; cooling areas; emergency medical care; and training. 

Carlos Matutes, community advocate for the environmental group GreenLatinos, points out that  80% of those working in agriculture are Latino, as are 64% of those working in the building trades. 

"Depriving them of paid rest periods, of shade, of water during the summer months is unconscionable," Matutes said. "We're trying to make sure New Mexico Environment Department establishes these rules as quickly as possible."

Sources: Truthout, “Trump’s War on OSHA Could Spell the End for Biden-Era Heat Protections,” 

Public Service News, Another summer without heat-protection rules for NM's outdoor workers - Public News Service

Photo by AP

By LNS Young Worker Organizer Martina Manicastri

Since April of 2024, the U.S. has documented an unprecedented 70 known cases of H5N1, or “bird flu,” among dairy and poultry farmworkers. This June, the CDC confirmed that bird flu is capable of airborne transmission, a finding that comes from a dairy worker in Michigan who is now known to have contracted bird flu via airborne transmission while interacting with sick cattle. While there is currently no evidence of human-to-human airborne transmission, this development presents a new threat that raises H5N1’s pandemic potential. Under the Trump administration, which is dismantling infectious disease research and tracking, and rebuking vaccination standards, this threat is even higher. 

Bird flu is not just a threat to humanity, it is a threat to wildlife, and researchers have reported “mass die-offs” of wild birds and mammals like sea lions in the last three years alone. What makes this round of bird flu different from past iterations is the virus’s evolution that allows birds to migrate further before dying. As wildfires and droughts become more common and disastrous, we are seeing major disruptions to bird migration, with birds also landing in more populous centers or near farms in search of water, further proliferating the spread. The spread of bird flu illustrates how the effects of climate change ramify in all spheres of life.

Dairy and farmworkers’ exposure to H5N1, which can be fatal, will only increase as we allow it to spread unmitigated. While the CDC recommends the use of PPE (personal protective equipment) for farmworkers, employers rarely provide it, and given the use of undocumented labor on farms, workers are even less likely to make demands for protection or report their illness. The labor movement must be prepared to fight for farmworkers on the frontlines of a potential H5N1 pandemic and begin taking the threat of climate change’s impacts on workers seriously by prioritizing climate demands in bargaining and strike planning.

Photo by ITUC

In 2024, Britain’s Trade Union Congress voted to back a Year of Trade Union Climate Action, engaging with community and climate justice groups. Major unions are promoting participation by their members and affiliates. A statement for the campaign says:

It needs all of us

Trade unions need to stand up for our class. All workers, their families and communities are at risk from extreme temperatures and weather events, and global food shortages. We also have essential knowledge about how to build a better, safer future: a public transport system accessible to all, training young people, protecting nature, growing food, and securing a just transition for workers in high carbon sectors, moving towards public ownership of key sectors like energy.

This is a social justice issue

Those who are already losing lives and livelihoods to climate breakdown have done the least to cause the problem. In the UK, as elsewhere, the worst impacts will fall on the disabled, elderly and young, racialized people and those on the lowest incomes. We need to stand together in global solidarity with workers and communities around the world, while demanding climate solutions that help those most in need here in the UK.

The market can’t solve this

We’ve seen the failures of relying on privatization and market solutions. We need climate jobs; investment in renewable energy and home insulation as the only way to get energy bills down and keep them down; we need to move towards public ownership and democratic control of energy and other crucial services. What we don’t need is another decade of austerity.

Making our voices heard

The ultra-wealthy and corporate media claim to speak for working people but are only interested in lining their pockets. They want to scrap regulations that protect workers, keep our air and water clean and tackle climate change. We can only oppose them successfully by coming together and organizing, within our workplaces, across sectors, and in communities, raising our voices to demand action.

Photo by Leah Mills, Reuters

Wondering what the emerging movement against MAGA and Trump and for democracy and justice can do next? In a recent series of Commentaries, LNS Co-Founder and Senior Strategic Advisor Jeremy Brecher describes the rise of the movement to defend society against the MAGA juggernaut and proposes next steps.

Social Self-Defense Has Begun

“In the first hundred days of the Trump regime, actions against his juggernaut have swelled from small local demonstrations to nationwide days of action with millions of participants, initiating a movement to defend society against the MAGA assault.” 

Mass Action for Social Self-Defense

“This commentary describes two large national days of action, Hands Off! And Mayday, and evaluates the development of the movement so far.”

Social Self-Defense vs. MAGA: A Strategic Assessment
“The defense of society will need to grow far stronger and find ways to turn Trump’s potential vulnerabilities into effective means to reduce and eventually eliminate his power.”

Social Self-Defense: From Protest to Movement-Based Opposition
“How can these promising but fragile beginnings become a powerful vehicle for restraining, dismantling, and eventually eliminating the MAGA attack on society?”

The Movement-Based Opposition in Action

The emerging movement-based opposition is a convergence of people and organizations dedicated to ending the power of MAGA and Trump. 

Making a Living on a Living Planet is published by the Labor Network for Sustainability. Copyright 2025. Labor Network for Sustainability. All rights reserved.

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Editor
Jeremy Brecher, Senior Strategic Advisor, LNS Co-Founder

Virginia Rodino, LNS Communications Director