FILM: "Fundi" The Story of Ella Baker

7pm, Monday, Dec 8
Vermont Workers' Center, 294 North Winsooki Ave, Burlington

Come join us on Monday, December 8th, 7pm, at the Vermont Workers' Center, 294 No Winooski Ave. We will be watching "Fundi." This 48 minute film is about the life and efforts of the great Civil Rights organizer Ella Baker. (full description below)

Come get acquainted with this great leader, in whose memory the Workers' Center has dedicated the upcoming Human Rights Conference, at UVM, on Saturday, December 13th (which is her birthday). Learn more and free registration at http://www.workerscenter.org/hrconference

This movie will kick off a series of gatherings at the Workers' Center; to include skill shares, talks, films, book discussions, music, dance, and food! Stay tuned January's schedule coming soon.

More info call the Workers' Center at 861-2877

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FUNDI: THE STORY OF ELLA BAKER reveals the instrumental role that Ella Baker, a friend and advisor to Martin Luther King, played in shaping the American civil rights movement. The dynamic activist was affectionately known as the Fundi, a Swahili word for a person who passes skills from one generation to another.

By looking at the 1960s from the perspective of Baker, the "godmother of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee," FUNDI adds an essential understanding of the U.S. civil rights movement.

First Run/Icarus Films is proud to re-release this landmark civil rights documentary with a new digibeta videomaster that has been digitally restored with enhanced audio and video.

"FUNDI, the powerful film account of Ella Baker's contributions, can enrich us immeasurably, adding depth and texture to our understanding of an important part of our past, inspiring us with examples of lives lived fully and purposefully." -Harvard Educational Review

"FUNDI fills a gap for those who know little of the history of the black struggle [and] is a compelling portrait of an extraordinary woman who has devoted her life to struggle and to the people who take part in it." -Harry Belafonte

"FUNDI does exactly what Ella Baker does: it gives us the courage to act on our own - and to affect the future." -Gloria Steinem

"FUNDI restores Ella Baker, the 'godmother of the SNCC,' to her place in the history of the civil rights movement. Rrecisely and elegantly executed... there's no pomposity, no false reverence - at least none that Baker herself can't cut right through." - Pat Aufderheide, for In These Times

2005 National Women's Studies Association Film Festival; Film of the Year, 1981 London Film Festival; Best of Category, 1981 San Francisco Film Festival; First Prize Winner, Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame (1981); 1981 CINE Golden Eagle Winner

Solidarity School 2008

The Campaign piece was very helpful and I began to use what I learned at my workplace the next week.

On March 29, the second annual Vermont Workers' Center Solidarity School concluded. 20 union members, students and community activists participated in three days of popular education, spread over six weeks. Participants sharpened their organizing skills, discussed how to put together tactics and strategies into successful campaigns to win concrete improvements for working people, explored people's history and the impact of racism on movements for progressive change, and — most importantly, in the views of many participants — had the opportunity to "connect with other workers, hear personal stories and struggles that others have, realize our similarities."

I appreciated the diversity of the facilitators and their experiences

The 2008 Solidarity School builds on the highly successful 2007 Solidarity School, and four graduates from the 2007 school returned to help facilitate the school this year, joining veterans of the VWC Education Committee, Kate Kanelstein from UVM SLAP and Doyle Canning from smartMeme.

Extra thanks and shout-outs to the organizations whose education materials we learned from/used/borrowed/stole: Project South, National Network For Immigrant and Refugee Rights, UE Education Department, Beyond the Choir, smartMeme, POWER, and others we may have missed ...

More photos of Solidarity School 2008

International Women's Day Party March 8

On March 8, 1908, working women in the needle trade industry took to the streets of New York City demanding better working conditions, higher wages, shorter workdays and the overall improvement of women's lives in this country. This year, on the 100th anniversary of that historic march, commemorated since 1910 as International Women's Day, join the Vermont Workers' Center in honoring all the working women who have fought for social justice with a short film, a panel discussion about working women's struggles in Vermont, and a social with refreshments and live music by VWC's own group, the Wildcat Strikers.

6pm Screening of With Babies and Banners, which tells the story of the women who became the backbone of The Great General Motors Sit Down Strike of 1937 — the labor movement's key to the successful drive for industrial unionism and a better life for working Americans.

7pm Panel discussion on the history of organizing around women's economic issues in Vermont and the history of the Women's Union, led by Elaine McCrate, Economics Professor at UVM.

8pm Refreshments, socializing and live music by the official band of the Vermont Workers' Center, the Wildcat Strikers.

[ download flyer ]

CHILD-FRIENDLY EVENT

2008 People's Calendar now available

The 2008 People's Calendar celebrates the 10th Anniversary of the Vermont Workers' Center and has great photos of workers' rights struggles and victories in VT from the past decade (like the cover shot is from the 2002 Fletcher Allen nurses union organizing victory!) Each month feautures inspiring social justice quotes and is loaded with Vermont and global historical dates celebrating the struggles and people that have shaped our world.

Get your copy today — order at our online store, come by our new space, or become a monthly sustainer and receive the calendar as a free gift.