Another mini-episode focused on the struggles of New York Taxi Drivers. Julian Guerrero speaks with Seydou Ouattara, an Uber driver since 2016 who moved to New York from the Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire)to pursue a career as an accountant in the US but who became active around the struggles of New York City Taxi Drivers.
Seydou speaks to Julian about his working conditions, how he became active with the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, and what taxi drivers are demanding from the city and state of New York.
Musical credit:
J. Cole - H u n g e r o n H i l l s i d e
Souls of Mischief - Cab Fare
May 23, 2021
27 min
When UPS fired 10 part-time workers at a warehouse in Laurelton, Queens, it sparked a wave of protests from Teamsters Local 804 and union activists across New York City.
May 8, 2021
15 min
We're back for a May 1st Special episode to commemorate International Worker's Day! Happy May Day!
For our May Day special, we're looking at the struggles of Delivery Workers in New York City - we speak with Katya and Juan Carlos, two delivery workers affiliated with Los Deliveristas Unidos, an up-and-coming Delivery worker organization. Katya is a Spanish-only speaker so Lupita Romero helped interpret this segment with us.
Lea Ramirez and Julian Guerrero take on the debate around worker misclassification by Uber, Lyft, Doordash, and other App-based companies explaining how this issue is creating a second-class status for working people across the globe.
Outro song - La Cumbia de la Bicicleta by David Aguilar
May 1, 2021
57 min
April 23rd 2021 marks one year of our series, Coronavirus and Class Struggle, on famed Lefty community radio station, NYC's WBAI 99.5 FM.
A few members of the Working Class Heroes Collective, Khadija Mehter, Lea Ramirez, and Julian Guerrero, reflect on one year of producing 32 episodes of interviews, reporting, and discussions on working-class struggles based in New York City. They discuss what they learned, how important support for independent media is needed to report on ongoing struggles, and what lies ahead for the Working Class Heroes Collective.
Musical credit:
Busta Rhymes - Slow Flow
Sault - Wildfires
Anderson .Paak - Yada Yada
Fashawn - Born in Amerikkka
Run The Jewels Feat Santa Fe Klan - Ooh La La
Vic Mensa. Chance the Rapper, Wyclef Jean - Shelter
Apr 23, 2021
1 hr 4 min
On this week's show, we speak with two people dedicated to shutting down Guantanamo Bay Detention Center and all detention centers that hold prisoners of the US empire.
Khadija Mehter speaks with former Guantanamo detainee, Mansoor Adayfi, who was incarcerated for over 14 years without a trial or a charge, as well as Maha Hilal, co-director of Justice for Muslims Collective, an organizer with Witness Against Torture, and a council member of School of the Americas Watch.
This is our last show for our Coronavirus & Class Struggle series on WBAI. We'll be taking a break from producing radio shows on WBAI for a few months as we figure out how to move forward in this tough media landscape. You can reach out to us through our social media platforms and check back here on Soundcloud for any future content we release.
We'll see y'all soon and as always, in solidarity,
The Working Class Heroes Collective
Mar 29, 2021
1 hr 3 min
On this week's episode of Working Class Heroes Radio, we speak with Jasmine and Kali of Southern Solidarity, an organization dedicated to liberation, mutual aid, and the cause of unhoused people, mainly in New Orleans and now, right here in New York City.
They spoke to Lupita about their efforts, what role they see mutual aid can play in the struggle for liberation, and how people can take up the cause of unhoused people.
Khadija Mehter and Mel Gonzalez host the show and also break down the rising number of undocumented immigrants who are unhoused and at risk of evictions in the wake of the pandemic.
Outro song - MIS featuring Toots Hilbert - Rebel
Mar 1, 2021
57 min
On this week's show of Working Class Heroes Radio, Julian Guerrero speaks with restaurant workers, Natalia Tylim and Gary Inman, both members of the Democratic Socialists of America and organizers with the Restaurant Organizing Project.
They'll be speaking with us about the struggles of the Restaurant Industry, especially with regard to the ongoing pandemic and their efforts to organize better work conditions through the Restaurant Organizing Project.
Lupita Romero and Danny Katch host the show and speak with Stella Becerril, the organizer of the Street Vendors Project about the recent victories as well as the continued struggles of street vendors as essential workers who have been continuing to serve the public.
Outro track by Los Fabulosos Cadillacs
Feb 22, 2021
58 min
On this week's show of Working Class Heroes radio, we speak with Prakash Churaman, the young Guyanese immigrant from Queens who spent 6 years incarcerated without a fair trial.
Now that Prakash is out on bail, Julian Guerrero asks him about his experience with the criminal justice system, how he's coping with being back home and what his struggle for freedom from the Queens District Attorney's grip might entail.
Lupita Romero and Mel Gonzalez host the show, lay out our latest headlines, and break down the issue of pre-trial detainment in New York City's criminal justice system with the help of Carl Hamad-Lipscombe, director of advocacy and policy at the Brooklyn Community Bail Fund.
Outro song - Sorrow, Tears and Blood - Ari Lennox GoldLink
*Minor Correction* - the Prisoner's Rights activist, David Rothenberg's last name, was mispronounced.
Feb 7, 2021
57 min
On this week's show of Working Class Heroes Radio, we speak with Aaron Petcoff, a software engineer, member of the Democratic Socialists of America, and a volunteer with the Tech Workers Coalition.
Lea Ramirez speaks with Aaron about the current role of the tech industry in the U.S., Tech workers' efforts to unionize, as well as the potential for the Tech Labor movement under the new Biden administration.
Khadija Mehter and Mel Gonzalez host the show and discuss Covid19 and New York State's response to it, including disparities in vaccination distribution and the problems with vaccine registration technology today.
Outro song - Poderoso by Navy Blue
Jan 31, 2021
57 min
From budget cuts to Trump's attempts to the sabotage mail-in voting system, Postal workers are fighting to save the US Postal Service.
On this week's show of Working Class Heroes Radio, Julian Guerrero speaks with city letter carrier, Frank Couget, about the struggles that Postal workers have been fighting throughout the Trump administration.
Khadija Mehter and Mel Gonzalez host the show, give us our latest headlines and talk about President Biden's first 100 days in office and what kind of president he will be to working-class people. Dariela Maradiaga calls in to speak about her brother's pending deportation, (Javier Castillo Maradiaga), and how ICE is ignoring Biden's moratorium on deportations.
Outro song - William Moore - Phil Ochs
Jan 24, 2021
56 min
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