Statewide rallies demand: 'Health care for people, not profit!'

SAN FRANCISCO

People throughout California rallied under the banner of “California’s 365 City Campaign for Universal Health Care” this past week. Activists rallied at the offices of Blue Shield of California at noon Aug. 8 in downtown San Francisco. Locally organized by the California Healthcare Organizing Project, the crowd protested the denial of medical care by Blue Shield to Cynthia Campbell, a local nurse with cancer, and supported the elimination of the health care insurance industry and for universal health care for all.

Many health care activists, many on their lunch break from work, participated. Some of the community groups attending included California Alliance for Retired Americans, Planning for Elders, Senior Action Network, Older Women’s League of San Francisco, Healthcare Action Team and the Peace & Freedom Party.

Organized labor participating included the San Francisco Labor Council, California Nurses Association, National Nurses Organizing Committee, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, United Educators of San Francisco (UESF #61) and Service Employees International Union (SEIU #1021).

Elected officials present were two California state senators and one member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

The California Nurses Association brought beautiful signs reading: “Guaranteed Healthcare—Patients NOT Premiums.” And there were yellow “safety” helmets distributed as well.

Between speakers the crowd chanted: “Health care—YES! Insurance Companies—NO!” And there was a “sing along” to the traditional song “We Shall Not Be Moved” with new stanzas, like “Unconditional health care, we shall not be moved,” “Patients before profits, we shall not be moved,” “Fighting for our children, we shall not be moved” and “The union is behind us, we shall not be moved.”

Speakers pointed out that the San Francisco Healthcare Ordinance, approved by voters and currently being phased in for uninsured San Francisco workers, is leading the way for an even better statewide universal health care measure. Called the California Universal Healthcare Act, California state senate bill SB 840 was approved by the state legislature last year, only to be vetoed by “The Governator” Arnold Schwarzenegger. But the struggle to get the universal health care measure enacted continues, as today’s rally clearly showed.

Los Angeles WW photo: Maggie Vascassenno

LOS ANGELES

Several thousand people attended a health care rally in downtown Los Angeles Aug. 11 sponsored by OneCareNow.org, a newly formed statewide coalition of labor unions, faith and community organizations uniting to demand universal health care. At the rally, Troops Out Now Coalition—LA organizers signed up dozens of trade union activists to join the Sept. 22-29 encampment and rally in L.A.

—Joan Marquardt and Maggie Vascassenno contributed to this report.