Episode 17: Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez On Organizing Essential Workers
“We have a system that is happy to accept undocumented workers’ labor but not their full humanity…
“ We can create a system that understands essential work should be paid as such, that if you risk your life to take care of society, you should be paid more.”
From https://www.cristinatzintzun.org: Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez founded and led two of Texas’ largest voting and civil rights organizations: Jolt, a Texas-wide organization focused on energizing the Latino vote, and Workers Defense Project (WDP), winning the passage of local and state laws protecting the rights of hundreds of thousands of workers. Cristina is a former 2020 US Senate candidate. She was named “Hero of the New South” by Southern Living Magazine and her work has been featured on NPR, Vogue, The New York Times, MTV, USA Today, Univision, MSNBC’s Up Late with Alec Baldwin, among others.
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Episode #17 Notes
1:00 - What motivated you to become a social justice organizer?
3:15 - What were some of the biggest challenges in organizing with undocumented immigrants?
6:15 - Why should we see undocumented workers as truly essential to our economy and the health of our communities?
9:45 - What are some of the biggest victories and letdowns in your organizing work?
12:45 - Is there cooperation with Texas AFL and mainstream unions?
15:20 - What obstacles or challenges have you faced as a powerful woman of color in politics and organizing?
18:30 - In the wake of BLM protests, what’s your assessment of the progress made so far and what are some threats?
21:30 - What motivated you to run for senate?
24:30 - What role did BIPOC organizers play in the most recent elections?
27:00 - What kind of changes do we need to see in Texas for the political climate to really shift?
31:00 - Do you see parallels with significant demographic and cultural shifts, like California and Arizona?
34:30 - How does food come into you organizing work?
37:45 - Cristina and the vegan diet.
41:00 - Cristina on gardening in Texas.
44:00 - What are some books that you’d recommend?
Big Wonderful Thing, Stephen Harrigan
