CBTU St. Louis honors activists at 45th Annual MLK Human Rights Awards Banquet

By TIM ROWDEN
Editor-in-Chief

St. Louis – The St. Louis Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) celebrated its 45th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Human Rights Awards Banquet Jan. 20 at SMART Sheet Metal Workers Local 36 Union Hall in St Louis.

This year’s honorees, recognized for their contributions for social justice, human and Labor rights in the St. Louis Metro Area in the tradition of Dr. King included:

• Missouri Jobs with Justice (JwJ) — for spearheading the successful campaign to require employers to provide paid sick leave and increase the Missouri minimum wage to $15 an hour.

• Missourians for Constitutional Freedom — for leading the campaign to end the ban on abortions in Missouri.

• Oluwadamini Melvin — a young, dynamic local and national CBTU Under 40 leader.

St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones provided the keynote address, in a combination campaign speech – focused on public safety, crime reduction, the city’s guaranteed basic income program, investments in transportation and reinvestment in North St. Louis since she became mayor – and an homage to Dr. King’s observation in his Letter From a Birmingham jail in which he stated “In a real sense all life is inter-related. All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

Jones used the quote as a stepping-off point to highlight investments in North St. Louis housing and workforce development, particularly in those neighborhoods around Dr. Martin Luther King Drive, including the ongoing development of the Monarch on MLK, an ambitious development project that started in October 2023 that aims to redevelop a 15.39-acre site into an innovative transit-accessible workforce and training campus for manufacturing and other high-paying, in-demand careers.

Paraphrasing Dr. King’s quote, Jones said, “What affects North St. Louis directly affects all of St. Louis indirectly.”

The Monarch campus is central to the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District — flanked by the Next NGA West Campus and six-neighborhood Project Connect Area on the east and AMIC STL and Ranken Technical College to the west.

“We are building a St. Louis that’s rooted in equity,” Jones said. “Across racial lines, across zip codes, across religious preferences, across any language you speak, across any identity you hold. St. Louis will win again and we will honor Dr. King’s ultimate dream, a society where everyone can succeed, reversing decades – decades – of historic wrongs and ensuring every family cannot just survive but to thrive.”

JOBS WITH JUSTICE
The victory of a $15 minimum wage and paid sick leave for all workers was landmark achievement of voter-approved Proposition A in the November election, made possible through support from community and Labor partners throughout the state, including CBTU and the Missouri AFL-CIO. But perhaps none so much as Missouri Jobs with Justice (JWJ), which spearheaded the campaign to put the measure on the ballot.

Proposition A, which 58 percent of Missouri voters supported in the Nov. 5 election, raised the state minimum wage to $13.75 an hour on Jan. 1, and will increase it to $15 an hour in 2026. After that, the wage will rise or fall based on the Consumer Price Index. Paid sick leave for employees, to be earned based on hours worked, will start in May.

“I have a quote from Dr. King that I think about when I think of Missouri Jobs with Justice,” said St. Louis CBTU President Natashia Pickens. “ ‘We will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends.’  because Jobs with Justice is never silent when it comes to workers and it comes to the union fight. They’re not afraid to challenge people, they’re not afraid to talk about the issues that are important, they are not afraid to get their hands dirty.

Richard Von Glahn, JWJ policy director accepted the award on behalf of Missouri Jobs with Justice, noting how when the fight for a $15 minimum wage started over a decade ago people thought the idea was crazy.

“What is crazy isn’t workers demanding that our most basic needs be met, it’s the level of inequality this country suffers from,” Von Glahn said. “The United States is home to over 759 billionaires. And guess what? Not a single one of them are essential to our daily lives. You know who is essential? Retail workers and food service workers. Construction employees and ambulance drivers. Nursing and childcare workers who helped us support our families. And yet very few of these workers received paid sick leave to care for their bodies or their loved ones in times of illness.

“Proposition A passed this November and will finally bring our minimum wage to $15 an hour and allow all workers to earn paid time off to care for themselves and their loved ones.

“It is so basic and yet it is still one of the best things to happen on Nov. 5. We in this room made it happen. JWJ is honored to receive an award from CBTU, one of our longest standing partners, and one who always answers the call to be there.”

MISSOURIANS FOR CONSTITUTIONAL FREEDOM
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom –  the coalition that worked to pass Missouri Constitutional Amendment 3, also known as the Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative – was a statewide alliance of organizations and concerned citizens that successfully worked together to ensure that all Missourians have the power to make decisions about their reproductive healthcare – including abortion education and access, birth control and miscarriage care. The measure narrowly passed by 51 percent.

Prior to the passage of Amendment 3, Missourians lived under a full abortion ban since June 2022, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade.

The YES on 3 campaign consisted of strong advocacy and action from several partners across the state, including CBTU.

“Organizing is an act of love. Hope is an act of discipline,” said Cecilia-Ananya Belser-Patton, JUST Systems founder and cultural curator, in accepting the award. “Dr. King exhibited all of that. The women who worked with Dr. King believed in all of that.

“CBTU St. Louis was one of the first Black organizations that said yes,” Belser-Patton said. “Women deserve the same thing as men do. We thank each of you for your diligent and dedicated work ethos in your belief that women are capable enough to make decisions about our bodies and what is best for ourselves and our families.”

OLUWADAMINI (DAMINI) MELVIN
Oluwadamini Melvin is a dedicated member of Communications Workers of America (CWA) local 6400, Missouri State Workers Union, and has made significant contributions to the Labor Movement, serving a secretary/treasurer for two terms and as chair of the Civil Rights and Equity Committee of his local.

During the Ferguson protests following the death of Michael Brown Jr., CWA members in Missouri, including Melvin, were some of the first union members to stand on the frontlines. His voice resonated at an AFL-CIO convening on racial justice, where he passionately advocated for the active role of the Labor Movement for Black lives.

Through collective efforts with community activists, Labor and community leaders in St. Louis achieved much-needed change in how Labor responded to sensitive issues affecting Black communities and implemented criminal justice reform.

In addition to his union work, Melvin also holds the distinction of helping to organize the first Labor-sponsored Juneteenth parade and community clean-ups in the city of St. Louis.

As a leader of CBTU Under 40 Leaders, he has organized young union members across various unions and building trades in the United States, Canada and Nigeria. His vision is to create a future where young trade unionists and workers can continuously collaborate to advance the Labor Movement in the community where members live and work.

His dedication to the Labor Movement spans a decade with membership in CWA, CBTU and the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI).

“I’m so humbled and honored to receive this award, following so many Labor leaders and leaders who continuously stand for change in our community,” Melvin said. “Thank you to everyone in this room who has contributed to my development.”