Harris tells UAW workers, ‘We stand for the dignity of work,’ and vows to fight for them
Vice President Kamala Harris along with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (left) and UAW President Shawn Fain during a Thursday rally in Wayne. (Michigan Advance photo by Ken Coleman)
WAYNE, Mich. — Dozens of United Auto Workers (UAW) members rallied on Thursday in Wayne to support Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
“I am so deeply honored as a lifelong supporter of union labor, for Tim and I to have the endorsement of the UAW,” Harris said during a 25-minute address at UAW Local 900. “When you know what you stand for, you know what to fight for. We stand for the people. We stand for the dignity of work. We stand for justice. We stand for equality. And we will fight for all of it.”
Attendees enthusiastically chanted to Harris, “We got your back!”
Walz, former schoolteacher and union member, echoed Harris’ sentiment.
“Thank you for the privilege of walking the picket line with you last year and thank you for allowing us to lift up our voices,” Walz told UAW members, referring to the “Stand Up Strike” against the Detroit Three automakers, Ford, Stellantis and GM. “The work that you did didn’t just benefit UAW workers – it benefited all workers. So, I couldn’t be prouder to be on this stage and couldn’t be prouder to stand with the UAW.”
In November, the Democrats will face GOP former President Donald Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio). Vance held a small campaign event at the Shelby Township Police Department on Wednesday morning, where he blasted Harris on the Biden administration’s immigration policy.
“We’re dealing with the consequences for it, even in places like Shelby Township,” Vance said. “Which the media would tell you, is far away from the Southern border and its problems. And geographically, of course, it is far away from the southern border, but it’s not far away from its problems.”
Harris and Walz are expected to be formally nominated by their political party later this month at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
This was the second event Harris and Walz held in metro Detroit this week, following a rally that drew more than 15,000 at a Detroit Metro Airport hanger on Wednesday. A slew of Democrats spoke at the rally, including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) and U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-Grand Rapids).
UAW President Shawn Fain spoke at both events. On Thursday, he praised the Harris-Walz ticket, saying, “Kamala Harris is one of us.”
“This election is about a choice, about whether we continue forward or whether we go backward,” Fain added. “This is a ‘which side are you on moment,’ and the choice cannot be any clearer.”
Local 900 represents thousands of members at Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant, one of the three original “Stand Up Strike” locals that walked out in September 2023. These members were the leading edge of a strike that brought the Detroit Three to the bargaining table and agree to contracts for 150,000 autoworkers across the country.
“At the end of the day, we all know that we rise and fall together,” Local 900 President Dwayne Walker said. “And that’s why we need to be involved in this process. It’s now or never. We may never have this chance again. We need to be together, and we have to be proactive.”
UAW Region 1A Director Laura Dickerson said that Harris “understands that all UAW members want is to make an honest living, feed our families, and put our kids through college.”
The UAW International Executive Board voted to endorse Harris last week, citing her “record of standing with the UAW and working class people, opposing anti-worker trade deals, and taking on corporate greed,” according to a UAW news release.
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