UMWA: Bankruptcy ruling changes nothing

More than 6,000 members of the United Mine Workers and supporting unions marched in St. Louis Monday, the latest in the union’s battle against Patriot Coal and parent corporations Peabody and Arch coal.  

The march ended outside the federal courthouse where bankruptcy proceedings got underway in the case involving Patriot and thousands of UMWA retirees. 

Among those who marched to the courthouse was UMWA president Cecil Roberts, who was arrested a fourth time in the ongoing fight with Patriot and parent companies.

“People may think when they make a decision over in that bankruptcy court it’s all over,”  Roberts told the crowd. “Let me tell you something, it’s just beginning.”

In some of his most fiery rhetoric to date on the matter, Roberts claimed God was on the side of the union in the fight and vowed to never back down, willing to die for the cause.

“What they don’t understand is we would die standing on the principle of you should keep your promises,” preached Roberts. “These people earned health care. They earned pensions, and we’ll fight to death to see that that promise is kept.”

Soon after the rally outside of Peabody Coal’s headquarters in St. Louis, Roberts led the crowd several blocks to the courthouse where St. Louis police officers stood shoulder to shoulder awaiting their arrival.

Members of the UMWA, wearing mining hard hats, carried a black coffin. Union officials called the coffin a symbol of those who had died enriching the coal companies , ho are now trying to deny health care and pension benefits promised in collective bargaining years ago.

Roberts and a handful of other protesters sat down in the street before police moved in to haul them away.  

Joining Roberts was former White House Aide Van Jones, an environmentalist who advised President Obama on green energy policy. Jones admitted to the crowd it was unusual for a man with his background to be among coal miners. He explained if a spotted owl or a salamander was threatened by the actions of a coal company, environmentalists would be there protesting.  Jones told the crowd he was being consistent by protesting when human beings were being threatened by a coal company.

 





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