Cole Rockarts w/ April Sims & Jesse Hagopian, FIRED UP ABOUT UNIONS

Labor organizer and educator Cole Rockarts visits the store for their new book Fired Up About Unions and will be joined in conversation by April Sims, President of the Washington State Labor Council, and Jesse Hagopian, educator, organizer, and author of Teach Truth.

Registration is not required, but helps us anticipate audience size.

Ever had a crappy job with an even crappier boss who made you feel disposable, powerless, and exploited? Whether you're bagging groceries, writing code, delivering food, or cleaning hotel rooms, Fired Up About Unions is your invitation to join the labour movement and understand how young people are paving the way for unions that are more democratic, inclusive, and ready to fight.

Private companies and politicians try to convince us that unions are outdated institutions run by outsiders, but young people aren't buying it. We know that unions are built by workers, for workers. Unions remain one of the most powerful tools workers have to fight for dignity, democracy, and a fair share of the wealth they create. In workplaces around the world, young people are leading a wave of bold union campaigns to win real power on the job. From coffee shops and classrooms to warehouses and hospitals, we are witnessing the next generation of workers coming together to win better pay, safer conditions, and job security in increasingly unstable economies. Fired Up About Unions is a practical beginner’s guide to what unions are, how they work, and why they matter. This is your call to action and guide to building worker power.

Cole Rockarts (they/them) is a labour educator, organizer, and writer. They have worked in public and private sector unions in Canada and the US since 2016. They have written about unions, politics, and working people for RankandFile.ca, Briarpatch, and SpringMag. Fired Up About Unions is their first book. They live in Los Angeles.

April Sims (she/her) was elected President of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO in October 2022 and was sworn in to begin her four-year term in January 2023. She is the first woman to be elected WSLC president and the first Black woman elected to the presidency of an AFL-CIO state federation. As President, Sims leads Washington’s largest union organization representing more than half a million union members, and supervises all of its activities and staff.

Jesse Hagopian is a Seattle based educator, organizer, and writer. He is the author of the book, Teach Truth: The Attack on Critical Race Theory and the Struggle for Antiracist Education and co-editor of the book Teachers Unions and Social Justice. Jesse taught in the public schools for twenty years, served as a building representative to his unions, and helped to found the social justice caucus Social Equity Educators. He is editor for Rethinking Schools magazine, a founding steering committee member of Black Lives Matter at School, and is the director of the Teaching for Black Lives Campaign of the Zinn Education Project. Jesse is the editor of the book, More Than a Score: The New Uprising Against High Stakes Testing, and the co-editor of the books, Teaching Palestine, Teaching for Black Lives, and Black Lives Matter at School.