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RED HOT: TRAYVON MARTIN
CHINA,
AFGHANISTAN, FIGHTING RACISM, OCCUPY WALL STREET,
PEOPLE'S POWER, SAVE OUR POST OFFICES, WOMEN, AFRICA,
LIBYA, WISCONSIN WORKERS FIGHT BACK, SUPPORT STATE & LOCAL WORKERS,
EGYPT, NORTH AFRICA & MIDDLE EAST,
STOP FBI REPRESSION, RESIST ARIZONA RACISM, NO TO FRACKING, DEFEND PUBLIC EDUCATION, ANTI-WAR,
HEALTH CARE,
CUBA, CLIMATE CHANGE,
JOBS JOBS JOBS,
STOP FORECLOSURES, IRAN,
IRAQ, CAPITALIST CRISIS,
IMMIGRANTS, LGBT, POLITICAL PRISONERS,
KOREA,
HONDURAS, HAITI,
SOCIALISM,
GAZA
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Harvard community protests racist attacks on worker
By
Phebe Eckfeldt
Cambridge, Mass.
Published Sep 17, 2009 11:23 PM
A strong, multinational, anti-racist picket of Harvard University workers,
students and community supporters took place Sept. 3 outside of the Harvard-MIT
Data Center. The 40 pickets were assembled to show support for Ravi Raj, a
worker there who has been under racist attack by his bosses for several years.
Angry chants of “Ravi Raj under attack! What do we do? Stand up! Fight
back!” and “No discrimination and no retaliation!” were heard
by his supervisors and other workers, who could be seen looking out the
upstairs windows. The morning of the picket, an e-mail had been sent to
Raj’s co-workers warning them not to talk to any press.
Raj is an immigrant from India who has endured racial slurs directed against
him and members of his family. A flyer handed out about his case says:
“Ravi has been called racist names, had his office taken away, was told
at one point he was fired, and has had food dumped on his desk. He has been
passed over for promotion, has been discouraged from participating in social
events at work, and has received mediocre evaluations despite very high
production and many compliments from colleagues. ...
“On April 24, Ravi had a meeting set up with administrators to challenge
unfair criticism of his performance and make a formal complaint of racial
discrimination. Just a few hours before the meeting, someone Ravi had never
seen before confronted him at work, called him by name, told him he had taken
‘the wrong path’ and should ‘watch out.’ When Ravi
asked the man’s name, he was told, ‘call me X,’ and
‘You’ll learn my name soon.’ Management was informed that
Ravi reported this incident to the police. On April 27, Ravi got an anonymous
phone call from someone asking, ‘How did the police report
go?’”
Working with his union representative from the Harvard Union of Clerical and
Technical Workers, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
Local 3650, Raj has filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board and
the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination.
Greeted with cheers of support when introduced at the picket rally, Raj vowed
to continue to fight. Speakers from the Harvard University No Layoffs Campaign,
the HUCTW, the Student Labor Action Movement, Service Employees union Local
285, UNITE/HERE, the Women’s Fightback Network, the Bail Out the People
Movement and Socialist Action all condemned Harvard’s racism and attempts
to divide workers while carrying out layoffs, cutbacks, and speed ups.
“We’ll be back! We’ll be back!” shouted the protesters.
Articles copyright 1995-2012 Workers World.
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