{"id":5890,"date":"2019-11-27T09:48:18","date_gmt":"2019-11-27T14:48:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/?p=5890"},"modified":"2019-11-27T13:03:07","modified_gmt":"2019-11-27T18:03:07","slug":"vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/","title":{"rendered":"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Mexican labor and environmental activist Oscar Hern\u00e1ndez Romero has been missing since September 23, 2019 and is presumed murdered<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

Human rights advocates have held vigils outside the U.S. Capitol Building and Mexican consulates from coast-to-coast calling for an investigation into the disappearance of a Mexican labor activist<\/a><\/span> and for greater enforcement of labor rights in a pending trade agreement between the United States and Mexico.<\/p>\n

Three people attempting to organize a union at the Media Luna gold mine in southwestern Mexico have been murdered in recent years, and on September 23, 2019, labor and environmental activist Oscar Hern\u00e1ndez Romero disappeared.<\/p>\n

His family and coworkers fear he has also been killed, and are asking authorities to investigate. Loved ones who have searched for his body in garbage dumps and ravines have reported receiving death threats for doing so.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want justice for Oscar Hern\u00e1ndez Romero,\u201d said Catherine Houston of United Steelworkers, District 12<\/strong>, at a vigil in San Francisco. \u201cThe starting wage for Media Luna miners is less than $2 an hour. That is not enough to provide for one\u2019s family. Mining is hard work, and these miners deserve the right to be treated with dignity as human beings, to have enforceable labor protections, and the right to organize a union of their own choosing that is free from violence.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m here to call on leaders who have the power to start the investigation of what\u2019s going on,\u201d said A.J. Mendoza, president of CWA Local 7901<\/strong>, at a vigil in Portland, Oregon. \u201cWe can\u2019t fall into the trap of thinking that Mexican workers’ rights are in any way separate from the working conditions of folks in my local. It is the same fight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Romero\u2019s disappearance and the earlier murders of unionists Quintin Salgado, Marcelino Sahuanitla Pe\u00f1a and Victor Sahuanitla Pe\u00f1a have all come as the United States attempts to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico and Canada. Unions in all three countries have demanded stronger labor provisions in a NAFTA replacement to be backed with swift and certain enforcement mechanisms.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe disappearance of Oscar Hernandez Romero and the murder of his three colleagues is a painful reminder that workers in Mexico still need protection. Strong labor rights and enforcement in the renegotiated NAFTA would help counter the violence against workers and improve the lives of Mexican and U.S. working people. [NAFTA\u2019s replacement] must have strong labor standards and enforcement, or it will not earn my vote,\u201d said Congressman Jes\u00fas \u201cChuy\u201d Garc\u00eda<\/strong> at the vigil in Washington, DC.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we are negotiating a deal to replace NAFTA, we must use this opportunity to secure rights and justice for our brothers and sisters in Mexico. The Mexican government must do its part and investigate unresolved cases of violence against Mexican unionists. It means a commitment of real funding to ensure that legal changes to protect worker rights are implemented. And it means that the agreement must include a strong enforcement mechanism that covers all workers, works quickly and includes strong penalties for violators,\u201d said Communications Workers of America (CWA) President Chris Shelton<\/strong> outside the Capitol Building.<\/p>\n

\u201cMultinational corporations tend to move jobs to Mexico because of the low wages, abysmal labor conditions and weak environmental protections there,\u201d said Rudy Gonzalez, Executive Director of the San Francisco Labor Council<\/strong>. \u201cThe Trump Administration\u2019s proposed agreement between the U.S., Mexico and Canada needs stronger terms in order to protect workers and the environment in all three countries. NAFTA 2.0 cannot be another pact that puts corporate profits ahead of working people and the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy heart goes out to the family and friends of the missing workers in Mexico. Collective bargaining and the right to organize are a fundamental part of a strong economy and strong workforce,\u201d said Congressman Adam Smith<\/strong> in a written statement read at a vigil in Seattle. \u201cI stand with labor unions and workers on this critical issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI stand here as a follower of Christ asking lawmakers to hold strong and insist upon protections for workers in Mexico,\u201d said Sister Quincy Howard OP, representative of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice<\/strong>. \u201cThey are the most vulnerable stakeholders in these negotiations and their treatment, in turn, impacts the fate of workers here in the U.S. In the face of the globalization of labor, Pope Francis calls for global solidarity in the fight against poverty and exploitation. Any lawmaker feeling pressure to accept the current offer needs to ask themselves how they would respond if American workers were being murdered by anti-union vigilantes.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than one hundred labor, faith and human rights advocates have participated in vigils that have taken place to date in New York, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, DC. Another vigil is planned in El Paso, Texas.<\/p>\n

TAKE ACTION<\/strong>: Click here to tell Congress that a NAFTA replacement must protect ALL workers.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Washington, DC<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a>

New York, NY<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a>

San Francisco, CA<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Portland, OR<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Seattle, WA<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Human rights advocates have held vigils outside the U.S. Capitol Building and Mexican consulates from coast-to-coast calling for an investigation into the disappearance of a Mexican labor activist and for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5917,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[108,66],"tags":[105],"yoast_head":"\nVigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer - Citizens Trade Campaign<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The disappearance of Mexican labor organizer Oscar Hernandez Romero starkly illustrates the need for greater enforcement mechanisms in NAFTA replacement\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer - Citizens Trade Campaign\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The disappearance of Mexican labor organizer Oscar Hernandez Romero starkly illustrates the need for greater enforcement mechanisms in NAFTA replacement\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Citizens Trade Campaign\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-11-27T14:48:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-11-27T18:03:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/MediaLunaVigil_Portland11319_Photo1-1-1024x768.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"768\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"CTC\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/\",\"name\":\"Citizens Trade Campaign\",\"description\":\"Working Together for Social and Environmental Justice in Trade Policy\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/MediaLunaVigil_Portland11319_Photo1-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/MediaLunaVigil_Portland11319_Photo1-1.jpg\",\"width\":4032,\"height\":3024},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/\",\"name\":\"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer - Citizens Trade Campaign\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2019-11-27T14:48:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-11-27T18:03:07+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#\/schema\/person\/9d3513e21fbf580e742ca365e5b29cea\"},\"description\":\"The disappearance of Mexican labor organizer Oscar Hernandez Romero starkly illustrates the need for greater enforcement mechanisms in NAFTA replacement\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer\"}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#\/schema\/person\/9d3513e21fbf580e742ca365e5b29cea\",\"name\":\"CTC\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#personlogo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99ccaaf6325245800715c05802f4c0b8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99ccaaf6325245800715c05802f4c0b8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"CTC\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/author\/ctcfairt\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer - Citizens Trade Campaign","description":"The disappearance of Mexican labor organizer Oscar Hernandez Romero starkly illustrates the need for greater enforcement mechanisms in NAFTA replacement","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer - Citizens Trade Campaign","og_description":"The disappearance of Mexican labor organizer Oscar Hernandez Romero starkly illustrates the need for greater enforcement mechanisms in NAFTA replacement","og_url":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/","og_site_name":"Citizens Trade Campaign","article_published_time":"2019-11-27T14:48:18+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-11-27T18:03:07+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":768,"url":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/MediaLunaVigil_Portland11319_Photo1-1-1024x768.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_misc":{"Written by":"CTC","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/","name":"Citizens Trade Campaign","description":"Working Together for Social and Environmental Justice in Trade Policy","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/MediaLunaVigil_Portland11319_Photo1-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/MediaLunaVigil_Portland11319_Photo1-1.jpg","width":4032,"height":3024},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#webpage","url":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/","name":"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer - Citizens Trade Campaign","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2019-11-27T14:48:18+00:00","dateModified":"2019-11-27T18:03:07+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#\/schema\/person\/9d3513e21fbf580e742ca365e5b29cea"},"description":"The disappearance of Mexican labor organizer Oscar Hernandez Romero starkly illustrates the need for greater enforcement mechanisms in NAFTA replacement","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/2019\/11\/27\/vigils-for-disappeared-labor-organizer\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Vigils for Disappeared Labor Organizer"}]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#\/schema\/person\/9d3513e21fbf580e742ca365e5b29cea","name":"CTC","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/#personlogo","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99ccaaf6325245800715c05802f4c0b8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/99ccaaf6325245800715c05802f4c0b8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"CTC"},"url":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/blog\/author\/ctcfairt\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5890"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5890"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5890\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.citizenstrade.org\/ctc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}