Labor Day in Seattle protests Palantir Technology’s billionaire owner as part of 800 ‘Workers over Billionaires’ actions across the U.S. WW PHOTO: Jim McMahan
Seattle
A thousand workers joined a Labor Day rally on Sept. 1 organized by the Seattle Martin Luther King Labor Council. They targeted Palantir Technologies, a high-tech war contractor. Peter Thiel, a leader in the Trump administration, is Palantir’s boss.
Labor Day in Seattle protests Palantir Technology’s billionaire owner as part of 800 ‘Workers over Billionaires’ actions across the U.S. WW PHOTO: Jim McMahan
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency’s contract with Palantir is worth over $200 million and is used to target and profile migrants for detention, torture, and deportation. Palantir has been awarded millions of dollars in taxpayer money to support battlefield intelligence in wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Gaza.
The rally was held in front of Palantir’s downtown Seattle offices. The main speaker was Fernando Rocha, a Brazilian migrant worker and member of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE).
Rocha, who hadn’t committed any crime, spent several months in detention after being arrested by ICE. He was still wearing an ankle bracelet, showing that he was being monitored. Rocha credited the union movement for his release. Katie Garrow of the Martin Luther King Labor Council also spoke.
Workers brought signs with the usual labor demands, such as not cutting Medicaid, Medicare, or Social Security, as well as anti-racist slogans and signs directed at Trump, ICE, and the billionaire ruling class. The action was a step forward for the labor movement, unifying workers against the ruling class with economic demands.
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