Opening comments

Henry Nicholas
President, 1199C National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees, Philadelphia, PA

Welcome, all of the freedom fighters.

We began this journey many days ago, at the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. Those of us who were here last year, we are here to say again: we have returned. We have returned here one year later to make good on our promise that we will never stop fighting for freedom.

It is my distinct honor, as president of the national union of hospital/health care employees and an international vice president of AFSCME, to welcome to the platform a real true crusader for justice. And I am honored that she is indeed a member of my union. No one understands more than she understands that in order for us to make sure that everyone understands all of the human rights violations inherent in the welfare repeal (I am not able say 'reform' because they did not reform it, indeed they repealed it). That we have come here to hear out loud that we understood very clearly what the framers of the Declaration of Independence said when they said, "When the system no longer works for the people, it is the duty of the people to change the system." We are here out of duty. It is our duty to be here because we have an obligation. If we don't do it for ourselves, we have an obligation to do it for the children of those that freedom fight with us. We made the commitment that we will never let them down. So, to begin, please join me in welcoming the leader of this crusade: a visionary, someone that's committed to justice. Please welcome my sister, Ms. Cheri Honkala.

Opening Comments - Cheri Honkala