ATU in the Room - International President Costa Attends Democratic National Committee Meeting
At the Democratic National Committee (DNC) Spring Meeting in New Orleans, ATU International President John Costa did what transit workers do every day. He showed up, held the line, and made sure working people had a seat at the table.
Showing Up for Workers
New Orleans has always been a city that understands the power of showing up. So, when the DNC convened its Spring Meeting there, it was fitting that International President John Costa arrived not as a spectator, but as a force.
Costa, a Super Delegate representing his home state of New Jersey, moved through the conference the way he moves through every fight, with purpose. He held conversations with DNC Chair Ken Martin, New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno, the first Latina and second woman to lead the city, and leaders across the country who are still trying to answer what a Democratic Party that fights for workers looks like.
Workers Are Not a Constituency Group
“Transit workers don’t get the luxury of sitting on the sidelines,” said Costa. “That’s why I’m here, speaking with Chair Martin, joining the Labor Caucus, and building relationships with leaders who understand that a strong Democratic Party has to be a party that stands with workers. Working people are not a constituency group at election time. We’re the backbone of America.”
It is a message the ATU has been delivering for decades, in bargaining rooms and legislative chambers, on picket lines, and now among Democratic Party leadership. The work does not stop when the contract is signed, or the election is over. It never does.
More than 200,000 transit workers across the United States and Canada are counting on the ATU to be in the room. In New Orleans, we were. We always will be.