MaryBe McMillan at Moral Monday, June 24, 2013.

By MaryBe McMillan

Video of MaryBe’s spoken word piece (above) begins at 28 minutes 51 seconds.

Why are union members and workers here, today?
We’re here because:

There’s too much corporate greed
And we have families to feed.
There are so few jobs, no decent wages.
Inequality tops the news pages.

CEOs earn more and more
While the rest of us grow poor.
The bosses want their workers cheap,
Meek and docile like sheep.

They move their companies South,
Hoping we won’t give them any mouth.
Well, imagine their surprise
As they watch the South arise.

From the mountains to the sea,
Black, white, and brown agree
Now is the time to take a stand
For justice throughout this land.

That’s why we’ll organize every workplace, every town,
And there’ll be no stopping us, no backing down.
In the face of our unity, injustice will crumble, it will crack,
And victory will be ours. Forward together, not one step back!

MaryBe McMillan is the elected Secretary-Treasurer of the North Carolina State AFL-CIO.