maine
GRITTv: Sarita Gupta & Diane Russell: Remembering Labor History
The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire was 100 years ago this week, and while labor groups and historians commemorate the deaths of 146 workers from unsafe working conditions, around the country conservatives are trying to erase all those years of labor history. The latest, in Maine, is that a Republican governor wants to have a mural at the state labor department painted over; its depiction of Maine's labor history, including the first woman labor secretary Frances Perkins, has been deemed too "one-sided." What do we lose when we forget workers' history? Sarita Gupta of Jobs With Justice and Maine state representative Diane Russell join Laura to discuss the stories we need to remember.
Email this pageGRITtv: March 24, 2011
"What they're not looking at is ultimately the extraordinary cost--both the human cost and the actual cost.." says Jeff Biggers, author of Reckoning at Eagle Creek: The Secret Legacy of Coal in the Heartland. After the Massey mine explosion and BP oil spill last year, we now face a nuclear disaster in Japan. The question, then, is whether we take the opportunity to push for truly clean energy or hunker down and retreat to the old faithful sources that are slowly killing us. Jeff joins us via Skype to discuss the possibility for better energy policy post-Japan, the new coal mines opening up in Wyoming, and much more. The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire was 100 years ago this week, and while labor groups and historians commemorate the deaths of 146 workers from unsafe working conditions, around the country conservatives are trying to erase all those years of labor history. The latest, in Maine, is that a Republican governor wants to have a mural at the state labor department painted over; its depiction of Maine's labor history, including the first woman labor secretary Frances Perkins, has been deemed too "one-sided." What do we lose when we forget workers' history? Sarita Gupta of Jobs With Justice and Maine state representative Diane Russell join Laura to discuss the stories we need to remember. Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: Moving Forward From Maine
Tuesday we looked at the Maine Equality campaign leading up to the election, watching volunteers from around the country working to help Mainers keep the marriage rights granted by the state legislature. In the second half of this video, from Chase Whiteside and Erick Stoll of New Left Media, we see election day go from elation to heartbreak as Maine voted, by a thin majority, to revoke marriage rights from gay and lesbian couples. Reactions from volunteers range from defiant to determined, discussing accountability -- from national organizations, politicians, and especially President Obama and the DNC, who ignored the No On One campaign.
GRITtv: Fighting for Equality on the Ground
In Maine, advocates of marriage equality suffered a setback in this past election, where voters overturned a decision by the state legislature to legalize gay marriage. Thousands of volunteers, both Maine residents and passionate out-of-staters, worked countless hours on the campaign, going door to door and making phone calls in an attempt to convert popular support in the state to votes. This video, from Chase Whiteside and Erick Stoll of New Left Media, gives an inside look at the No On One campaign, from get-out-the-vote training to a rally and candlelight vigil the night before election day. Watch for Part 2 tomorrow!
GRITtv: Kate Clinton: We Will Remember Maine
Kate Clinton talks about the LGBT equality measures that passed in Kalamazoo, Michigan and Washington State, and the marriage equality law that was overturned in Maine on Election Day. "We're not just like you. You've got rights; we don't," she notes, calling for heterosexuals to have to ask people to vote on their rights.
GRITtv: Hope: After a Year, What Does It Mean?
Hope. It was the word for the Obama campaign, epitomized by the famous Shepard Fairey poster, with eyes uplifted, bright primary colors declaring that Americans believed in something good again. Last year on election day, we discussed the election and the future of America; hoping for an Obama victory and with it some restoration of the things we'd lost under Bush. This year, we look back with some of our guests from that day on what they said then and what they think now. Chris Hayes of The Nation remembers the feeling of social solidarity from the Obama campaign, hundreds of thousands of people coming together to work for a common cause, while Danny Schechter of MediaChannel and NewsDissector points out that Obama had plenty of support from Wall St. as well as Main St. Air America's Ron Reagan wonders why Maine managed to expand its rights to medical marijuana while closing off rights to same-sex couples, and Esther Armah of WBAI notes that Obama's election maintains its symbolic importance, even if dealing with the reality is somewhat more complicated.
GRITtv: One Year Later, Still Politics as Usual?
Election 2009 was a mixed bag for all sides. But what did these results have to do with Obama? Our panel agrees on one thing: Democrats neglected the base that Obama worked so hard to build up. Jehmu Greene of the Women's Media Center notes that Democrats reverted back to the old way of doing things, and Jane Hamsher of FireDogLake points out that the candidate who supported the public option, Bill Owens in NY-23, won, while Creigh Deeds in Virginia, who said he might opt the state out if he was governor, lost. Mark Green of Air America, who once ran against Michael Bloomberg, noted that despite the massive outlay of cash, Bloomberg ran a tight race and could've been defeated if the Democrats put more effort into supporting his opponent. Katrina vanden Heuvel of The Nation notes that the youth vote was critical in 2008, and warns Democrats of what they risk losing if they ignore the young voters now.
GRITtv: Nov. 4, 2009: One Year Later
In a special one-hour show, we convene two panels of GRITtv regular guests to talk about these questions, the election results, and what progressives need to do better going forward into 2010. Joining us are Katrina vanden Heuvel and Chris Hayes of The Nation, Jehmu Greene of the Women's Media Center and formerly of Rock the Vote, James Rucker of Color Of Change, Danny Schechter of News Dissector, Jane Hamsher of FireDogLake, Ron Reagan and Mark Green of Air America, and Esther Armah of WBAI.
GRITtv: Hannah Pingree: Maine Sued for Health Care Profits
Maine Speaker of the House Hannah Pingree comes from the same state as Olympia Snowe, but she is in favor of a strong public option. Her state is currently being sued by insurance giant Wellpoint for a guaranteed 3 percent profit margin in the midst of a recession that has hit Maine especially hard. Pingree notes that small states like Maine need strong federal regulations to back them up because huge companies like Wellpoint think they can push the state around and raise premiums without raising benefits.
