“What do we want?”
“FIFTEEN!!”
“When do we want it?!”
“NOW!”
All across the world today, April 15, protesters marched to show their support for the growing movement Fight for 15. It has been no secret that minimum wage does not extend far enough to provide for a family to live a comfortable life. However, multi-million dollar companies like McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and Walmart continue to pay their store employees minimum wage, forcing too many of them to get second jobs to simply put food on the table. Fight for 15 is about demanding fair wages, union rights, and respect in the workplace.
Rochester is included in this fight. It is, in fact, the 5th poorest city in America. Today, I marched alongside numerous fast food workers on strike, students, activists between the ages of 5 and 85, and many others. Beginning with a rally at the Eastman quad on our campus, the group of more than a hundred protesters marched towards Mt. Hope Avenue, where many fast food restaurants, including a McDonalds, reside. Along the one mile walk, MetroJustice leaders – among others – led chants demanding living wages, justice, etc.
“NO JUSTICE. NO PEACE.”
The march flooded Elmwood Ave., eliciting approving honks from drivers passing by. It was an entirely positive environment, with more able bodied protesters helping out the elderly, who despite canes and walkers, came out to fight for justice. People held up signs, encouraged others to chant, and danced along to the rhythmic chants.
Once the crowd arrived at McDonald’s, we stopped walking, chanted some more, (someone destroyed a ronald McDonald piñata), then fell (relatively) silent to hear stories from fast food workers. I heard from workers who had worked at McDonald’s or Burger King for years without any sort of raise or compensation for their hard work and time. I head how corporate McDonald’s once tried to mollify unhappy employees by giving a raise of $1… but only to 9% of their workforce. It’s stories like this that prove the injustice of the system, and prove that Fight for 15 really is worth something.
“AIN’T NO POWER LIKE THE POWER OF PEOPLE, ‘CAUSE THE POWER OF PEOPLE DON’T STOP”
I was incredibly proud to see University of Rochester students participating in such an important cause. It is comforting to know that today’s college students are not wholly engrossed in social media and partying; there are many of us that care about the world that we live in and those that we share it with.
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*Photo Credit to Keith Jensen & Students for a Democratic Society*