By MIKE ALEWITZ
On Oct. 6, 1995, the International Association of Machinists (IAM) went on strike against the Boeing Corporation. Some 32,000 workers downed tools in a successful 69-day work stoppage that ended on Dec. 14, 1995.
In the midst of the strike, I airbrushed this banner on-site at a community festival in Seattle, Wash. (A scab is a strike-breaker—someone that betrays their brothers and sisters to cross picket lines in their own self-interest.)
Boeing is the second-largest defense contractor in the world. The company has spent millions lobbying for lucrative defense contracts while slashing thousands of jobs.From 2008 to 2013, Boeing made over $26.4 billion in profits, yet it received a tax refund of $401 million—giving it an income tax rate of -2 percent. (For further reading, see: https://socialistresurgence.org/2020/10/05/boeing-attacks-its-workers-again/)
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Image: Banner by Mike Alewitz / 1995. Based on the IAM logo.