(This article appears in the May-June 2014 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)
We have heard it most of our lives: “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” That famous quote by President Abraham Lincoln referred to our national “house.” It certainly applies to our union, which is like a big family. We need unity to win the fights we must wage to protect our jobs and preserve the U.S. Postal Service.
Internal bickering and infighting are different than legitimate debate. Of course, we are not always going to agree; however, actions that undermine democracy, equality, respect and human dignity violate our union’s constitution. Public conflict, personal attacks, verbal insults and physical assaults have no place in our union.
The APWU’s constitution was established to form a more perfect union. By forming the APWU, our union’s founding fathers and mothers established an organization to fight the abuse that postal workers suffered at the hands of our employer. They also realized that we also frequently fall short of following the golden rule.
Reprint (This article appears in the May-June 2014 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)
