Los Angeles, CA – Today, following President Donald Trump’s divisive State of the Union address, SEIU-USWW President David Huerta released the following statement:
“What we heard from President Trump was a divisive and troubling doubling down on his open war on working families. He has made it clear he is prioritizing funding a deliberate and escalating campaign of fear that targets workers, immigrants, and entire communities instead of investing in our future and our communities.
“From his militarization of the streets of Los Angeles, to his taking over of various states’ National Guards, to the harassment and murder of immigrants and citizens alike at the hands of ICE and Border Patrol — these are not isolated incidents. This is a part of a broader strategy to silence dissent, criminalize resistance, and erode the foundations of our democracy.
“Across this country, families are being separated. People are being taken from their homes and neighborhoods by masked agents. They are being harassed at work, intimidated in schools, detained without due process, even murdered. This is not public safety – it is state repression.
“We continue to demand no more federal dollars for ICE, Border Patrol, or detention centers and demand accountability for the Administration’s rogue and violent actions, including the impeachment of Secretary Noem for her leadership of the Department of Homeland Security. The Administration has failed workers at every turn and at every level, prioritizing hatred and racism over substantive solutions to the greatest challenges facing workers, like affordability, economic justice and social justice.
“SEIU-USWW members are not afraid. We will not be silenced. We will not be divided. And we will not stop fighting for justice, for dignity, for citizenship now and for a future rooted in freedom and solidarity.”
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SEIU-United Service Workers West (USWW) is a leading union in California representing more than 50,000 janitors, security officers, airport workers, and other property service workers across the state.