“Frankly, the conduct displayed by Toyota and the city here is just the kind of stuff that happened during the civil rights fight in the South during the 1960s.”
More than 300 members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters demonstrated in Detroit today and marched in a mock funeral procession to the North American International Auto Show at Cobo Center.
It was part of an ongoing series of protests against Fiat for using the bankruptcy process to move 5,000 Chrysler carhauling jobs to non-union carriers.
The union also handed out leaflets at the auto show’s charity preview last night protesting Chrysler’s demands for concessions on wages and benefits.
The latest demonstration follows a ruling yesterday by a Federal Court saying that Teamsters had the constitutional right to distribute leaflets inside the lobby of the Cobo Center during the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS). The judge directed the city’s police department to stop interfering with the union.
The ruling resulted because of a Teamsters Union complaint for injunctive relief in U.S. District Court in Detroit. The lawsuit alleges that the Toyota Motor Corp. conspired and acted in concert with governmental defendants to deprive the Teamsters Union its constitutional rights.
Ironically, the legal action in a largely black city with a Black mayor and police chief was brought under the federal Ku Klux Klan Act, which was enacted in after the Civil War to address efforts by private parties, including the lynch mob Klan, to conspire with government officials to deprive citizens of their rights.
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“Frankly, the conduct displayed by Toyota and the city here is just the kind of stuff that happened during the civil rights fight in the South during the 1960s,” said Teamsters General Counsel Brad Raymond.
The Teamsters said in a statement that Fiat/Chrysler “received $14 billion in U.S. taxpayer bailout money that was supposed to help the economy and save jobs. However, Fiat/Chrysler is now making business changes that endanger over 5,000 good jobs with health benefits.”
"The loss of this work could put these carriers out of business, leaving thousands without jobs.”
At the rally, U.S. Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), City Councilwoman JoAnn Watson, and Detroit Rainbow/PUSH President Rev. D. Alexander Bullock spoke about Fiat/Chrysler moving work from its longtime new car delivery companies.
“Fiat/Chrysler is moving work away from the car carrier companies that have delivered its vehicles to dealerships for many years. The loss of this work could put these carriers out of business, leaving thousands without jobs,” said Teamster Carhaul Division Director Fred Zuckerman. “This is after many carhaul drivers have already accepted major economic concessions. Some have seen wage cuts up to 17.5%.”
Earlier this week, Teamsters disrupted a speech in Detroit by Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne at an Automotive News event.
The Teamsters complaint alleges that on Jan. 13, representatives from the union were told by the Detroit Police Department that they would not be allowed to distribute leaflets to attendees entering the auto show.
One union representative, who questioned whether the department was aware its position violated the union’s First Amendment rights, claims an officer said, “This is the auto show. You don’t have any constitutional rights.”
At a subsequent meeting, Teamster representatives met with the Detroit police, the city attorney and others. Also present was a representative of the Toyota Motor Corp., one of the auto show’s larger exhibitors. Due to Toyota’s presence at this meeting, the complaint alleges that Toyota conspired and acted in concert with the governmental defendants to deprive the Teamsters of their constitutional rights.