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AFL-CIO Convention Builds Strategy Around a United Movement

The U.S. government is using billions in taxpayer money to round up members of the workforce and put them in detention centers. CEOs who run the 100 companies with the lowest median wage are making 632 times more than their employees. It is not surprising that the recent national AFL-CIO convention held in Minneapolis focused on building solidarity at a pre-conference civil rights unity summit and global symposium.

An Historical Lesson in Economic and Union Policies: The Hormel Strike of 1985

When the seven-year wage freeze finally expired in 1984, employees expected negotiations to focus on raises that would compensate for years of sacrifice. Instead, Hormel proposed a 23 percent wage cut.

Q&A With Bernie Burnham: Solidarity Goals of Minnesota’s AFL-CIO

"My mom was an Irish immigrant. This country was founded on immigrants, and we took this land from the people who were here. Nobody really belongs here, unless you are an Indigenous person. In my heart, it's important to show up and be there for everybody — working class people, children, immigrants, women, LGBTQ+, anyone who has been othered or put down because of who they are, their religion. Whatever it is, I'm going to stand up. That's the right thing to do."

NEWS: Rise Up Center for Workforce Training Breaks Ground in Uptown Minneapolis

"In the labor movement, we believe that all work has dignity and that every worker, no matter where they come from, what they look like, or what they do for a living, deserves access to a stable, sustaining job and the necessary training for advancement."

MayDay March on Lake Street: Photo Gallery and Montage

Images, quoted, and a short audio-video montage of the MayDay march on Lake Street in Minneapolis.

Readers Recommend: Which ICE-Impacted Businesses Do You Support?

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We are sharing recommendations by readers in this space of immigrant-owned businesses you recommend and why.

Earth Day Rally Reiterates Need for Data Center Moratorium

Across all testimony, a consistent theme emerged: Minnesota is moving faster than its policies can manage. Speakers did not uniformly oppose data centers outright, but insisted that without a pause, the state risks long-term environmental, social, and economic harm. The call was clear: slow down, study the impacts, and ensure communities — not just corporations — shape the future.

COLUMN: Nancy Lyons on ‘The Convenience of Moral Flexibility’

"We've built an entire economy around the principle that winning is its own justification. That growth forgives everything. A system that suggests that if the stock price is up, the strategy must be sound. But here's the part we don't talk about enough: What do we actually lose when winning becomes the only metric that matters?"

2025 Report: New Americans Drive Minnesota’s Population Growth and Labor Force

In many counties, particularly outside the Twin Cities metro, immigration has been the difference between growth and decline.

NEWS: The Mark of Operation Metro Surge on Minnesota’s Workforce and Economy

Local officials, business leaders, and immigrant rights advocates talked about the economic impact of ICE insurgence at a Minnesota House committee meeting. The long-term care sector faces particular pressure, given that approximately 30 percent of its workers are foreign-born. Minnesota’s immigrant business owners and workers generate $41 billion in economic output each year in the state.

Consumer Boycotts Reflect Who Actually Controls the Economy

GEO Group, CoreCivic, and CSI Aviation — some of the country’s largest private prison and deportation contractors — gave Trump close to $5 million and received over $5 billion in revenue. Consumer boycotts are designed to showcase other values. Said one, who was arrested for a sit-in protest at Target: "Everyday people are doing their part. We are asking why large corporations will not.”

Future Forward: How Collective Pressure on Corporations Works

During the last election cycle, Donald Trump’s top donors in the crypto, oil and gas, and deportation industries collectively spent $700 million dollars supporting MAGA candidate campaigns, according to research published in The Guardian. In exchange, they received over $170 billion in policies and tax breaks — an 18,000 percent return on investment.