IF I CAN'T DANCE is ready!

You can order my new CD, If I Can't Dance, from CDBaby now!

1. Emma Goldman
2. Defenders of Marriage
3. My Feet Are Tired
4. Dr Jazz
5. Amelia Earhart's Last Ride
6. Shell Game
7. Let Their Heads Roll
8. Too Much Monkey Business
9. Me Case con un Heroe
10. Who's the Criminal?
11. Sheik of Araby/Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me
12. Days of the Theocracy
13. Your Mind is on Vacation
14. The Dutchman
15. Phil the Fluter's Jam
16. Lullaby

Have You Been to Jail for Justice in France?

I discovered this page the other day - maybe someone can pick up this French translation of Have You Been to Jail for Justice and make it rhyme....

Avez-vous été en prison pour la justice ?


Était-ce César Chavez ? Ou peut-être Dorothy Day ?
Certains diront : c’est le Dr King ou Gandhi qui les ont mis sur la voie.
Peu importe qui vous a inspirés, ça fait plaisir à voir.
Que si vous avez été en prison, vous êtes en bonne compagnie.

Avez-vous été en prison pour la justice ?
Alors je vous serre la main.
Car croupir là est une manière de se dresser.
Avez-vous chanté une chanson pour la liberté ?
Ou participé à ce piquet ?
Avez-vous été en prison pour la justice ?
Alors, vous êtes mon ami !
Vous citoyens respectueux de la loi, écoutez cette chanson !

Les lois sont faites par des gens et les gens peuvent se tromper.

Dans le temps les syndicats étaient contre la loi, mais l’esclavage c’était OK.
Les femmes n’avaient pas de droits e les enfants bossaient à la mine.
Plus vous étudiez l’histoire, moins vous pouvez nier ça.
Une loi pourrie reste en vigueur tant que des gens comme nous ne la défient pas.
Les lois sont supposées nous servir, et la police aussi.
Et quand le système échoue, c’est à nous de parler pour la paix.
Ça demande une vigilance éternelle que de faire prévaloir la loi.
Alors, puisez votre courage dans vos convictions.
Laissez-les vous embarquer en taule !

Fellow Travelers' Advisory from Anne Feeney - AUGUST 2006, VOLUME TWO, # 5

Fellow Travelers' Advisory from Anne Feeney - AUGUST 2006, VOLUME TWO, # 5

IMMEDIATE DESTINATIONS:

WATSONVILLE, CA
FELTON, CA
LOS ANGELES, CA
PALO ALTO, CA
NEVADA CITY, CA
SACRAMENTO, CA
TUCSON, AZ
LAUREL, MD
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
LAWRENCE, MA
READING, PA
JIM THORPE, PA
IRELAND
TERRE HAUTE, IN

continuously updating details at my website

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IN THIS ISSUE:

LEBANON - INCLUDING DAN AND MONIQUE UPDATE
NATIONAL GREEN PARTY CONVENTION IN TUCSON
SIDE TRIPS - MARIPOSA, THE MIDWEST SCHOOL & MORE
SKYDIVING BIRTHDAY PICS
NEW CD IS READY!
FUN LINK

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You can subscribe, and have the Fellow Travelers'Advisory delivered to you monthly...

You can buy my CDs at CDBaby...
The newest cd "If I Can't Dance" will be available there very soon. I'm mailing out
the pre-orders and sponsor copies right now!

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UPDATE ON BEIRUT/LEBANON/DAN & MONIQUE


Many of you know that I was planning a trip to Beirut this summer to visit my son Daniel Berlin and his fiance, Monique Murad. They have been there for the past two months studying Arabic and enjoying the culture and many pleasures that Beirut has to offer.

It is with outrage and utter disbelief that we watch this country being destroyed -- hundreds dead and over 500,000 civilians forced to flee Lebanon with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

Dan's blog
is filled with first hand observations of Lebanon before and after the attack.

Thank goodness Dan and Monique were able to escape and will be safely back in the US on July 27th. Please call Congress and insist that no further weapons be sent by the US to the region and that we join the world in calling upon both sides for an immediate cease fire. Please check out these links for further action!

UFPJ

and this link that Dave recommends


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NATIONAL GREEN PARTY CONVENTION

Touring with Dave Lippman has been so much fun. He's a genius - and so funny - and a great musician and composer. We are delighted that our tour ends with a surprise add-on! The National Green Party has invited us to Tucson to do a concert. It's open to the public, and also gives me a chance to visit my Tucson cousins again! See the details below.

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TOUR SIDE TRIPS: THE MARIPOSA FOLK FESTIVAL, THE MIDWEST SCHOOL FOR UNION WOMEN, and the CALIFORNIA AFL-CIO CONVENTION

I had to take a few breaks from the Triple Trouble Tour with Dave -- the first was to the Mariposa Folk Festival - a couple hours outside of Toronto on the shores of Lake Koochiching (sp?). I heard so much great music and connected particularly with a great young band called Stonefox, as well as poet Robert Priest and a fantastic bass player named Dan... uh... Dan... (they told me not to take that green stuff at woodstock, but I didn't listen... sorry I forgot his name)

I met Canadian folk legend Sid Dolgay too... he and Guy Carawan toured together for a while and Sid wrote a Canadian version of "This Land is Your Land" that became a hit in Canada and is still taught in schools.

I just returned to the Triple Trouble Tour after a week at the Midwest School for Union Women -- a dedicated and hardworking bunch of women who are sure to bring a power surge of new energy back to their locals. The instructors at this conference are phenomenal. Many thanks to Helena Worthen for including me as minister of culture this year. I wrote a set of lyrics to "Don't Fence Me In" for a rally at City Hall in Chicago to keep out "big box" employers like Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Target unless they agree to provide living wages to their workers...

I want to roam 'round a town where varieties abound

DON'T BOX ME IN!

Buy something chic and unique at a neighborhood boutique

DON'T BOX ME IN!

I like to have lots of options - merchants galore
I get Mallzheimer's in a big box store
Here in the Windy City we need more --

DON'T BOX ME IN

Don't want to cry when I buy those sweatshop goods from China

DON'T BOX ME IN

Don't want to shop where workers labor til they drop

DON'T BOX ME IN

I want a living wage, and did I mention
A union, health care and a decent pension
City Hall - give me your attention and

DON'T BOX ME IN!!!

Gloria Guzman from the Honduran Banana Workers' Union spoke eloquently at the conference about trade union struggles and women's victories in the labor movement in Honduras. Her visit was sponsored by STITCH that
does fabulous work.

The globalization panel was moderated by Judy Ancel of Kansas City who does so many good things I can't count them, but also introduced me to the work of the Coalition for Justice in the Maquiladoras.


Next Monday night I'm flying to LA to perform at the CA State AFL-CIO Convention - I'm looking forward to that too! Then the Triple Trouble Tour continues!!

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SKYDIVING!

Yes, Amy talked me into it. The pictures are posted directly below this...

It was literally a breathtaking experience. Amy and her dear friend Justin and I celebrated my 55th birthday by jumping out of an airplane at 13,500 feet (4115 meters for those of you playing along in Denmark, Canada, Sweden ... well, everywhere but the US ). [by the way, bookmark this link if you want a quick easy way to convert feet-meters etc]

We had our adventure just north of Salem, OR on July 2nd... It was hot and sunny and the view of Mt. Hood and the surrounding mountains was spectacular. Oregon Skydive requires tandem jumps on your first effort, so you'll see me attached to a terrific guide in the photos.

The 6 seconds of free fall at 120 miles an hour (193km/hour) came to an abrupt end when the parachute opened, and then the stillness and the beauty were overwhelming.
It took almost another nine minutes to get to the ground for a perfect stress-free landing. I'm glad I paid the extra to have the photos taken -- I've relived the adventure a hundred times since.

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"IF I CAN'T DANCE" IS READY!

I'll be mailing out the pre-orders this week, as well as the sponsor copies. It should be up on CDBaby for sale any second now, too!

Thanks to everyone who helped to make the recording possible. I hope you'll buy copies for yourselves and all your friends as soon as it's up at CDBaby.

It will also be in the Labor Heritage Foundation's new catalog.


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FUN LINK

Many of you may already be familiar with the brilliant work of Bruce Yurgil - Check out his Political Velocity Cartoons.

That's it till September... Thanks for reading... and please, do everything you can to stop this attack on Lebanon!

SKYDIVING PICS

My son Dan and his fiance Monique Murad in Beirut

Many of you know that my son is in Beirut this summer with his fiance Monique Murad. I am planning to visit them. They are now caught in Israel's attack on Lebanon. Israel has bombed the airport in Beirut and put up a naval blockade, but I'm determined to get together with them somewhere soon.

Dan has a blog on myspace that has continually updating news from Beirut

check out Dan's myspace profile

if you're not a myspace member you can click here for today's posting


Thanks for all your expressions of concern

Fellow Travelers' Advisory from Anne Feeney - JULY 2006, VOLUME TWO, # 4

Fellow Travelers' Advisory from Anne Feeney - JULY 2006, VOLUME TWO, # 4

Dave Lippman and I on the two story Jobs with Justice Float, singing "The Internationale" in the 4th of July parade in Ashland, OR



IMMEDIATE DESTINATIONS:

The fabulous left coast Triple Trouble Tour with Dave Lippman ....

Cave Junction, OR
Briceland, CA
Berkeley, CA
San Rafael, CA
Foster City, CA
Chicago, IL
Watsonville, CA
Palo Alto, CA
Felton, CA
Sacramento, CA
Los Angeles, CA
Tucson??? stay tuned!
San Francisco, CA
Laurel, MD

Then Lebanon, Sweden, Denmark, Labor Day in Lawrence, MA at the Bread and Roses Festival and then Ireland!! Details at the end of this message and continuously updating on my tour dates page.

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You can have this delivered to your inbox monthly by visiting my webpage and signing up!

I try my best to keep the calendar current, but it's always a good idea to check directly with the venue before you hop on your bike, bus, hybrid vehicle, etc...

you can buy my CDs at CDBaby ... thanks for your interest in my music!!

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In this issue:

A. It's my birthday!
B. World Peace Forum - Vancouver, BC
C. The Triple Trouble Tour is a blast!
D. My new CD - "If I Can't Dance"
E. It's twins!

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A. IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!!

Hi there folks:

July 1st was Canada Day and my 55th birthday. Dave and I were in Portland on my birthday and my daughter Amy convinced me to celebrate my birthday by going skydiving. Pictures coming soon....

June 29th found us on beautiful Vancouver Island. Dave Lippman and I did a house concert at Ken Orchard and Sharon Hazelwood's house in Victoria. What great folks. We took the ferry from Vancouver to Nanaimo and drove down the east coast of Vancouver Island on a gorgeous highway called the Malahat. It's some of the most spectacular scenery you'll see anywhere.

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B. WORLD PEACE FORUM

The organizers were hoping for 3000 people, but almost 5000 registered for and attended the first annual World Peace Forumin Vancouver, BC. Delegates from all over the world came to let each other know about crises and successes in their countries. It was troubling to hear about militarization in Japan - a country that has been a model for peace work for decades now. It was empowering to hear women from Africa speaking about community efforts to end violence and war. My friend, Kent Wong from UCLA and APALA - the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance spoke enthusiastically about the huge and growing immigrant rights movement in the US. It was impossible to take in even a fraction of the information shared over the 6 days of the conference....

Dave Lippman and I were thrilled to be invited to perform twice at the Forum, and to see so many other talented cultural workers there... including our pals, Emma's Revolution and Holly Near.

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C. TRIPLE TROUBLE TOUR

Dave Lippman and I are having so much fun touring together. If you are unfamiliar with his work, check out his website. He's a real pro, and so talented and funny! We still have quite a few dates left on the tour, so please encourage your left coast friends to find us and have some fun! We've had great shows so far... at Vancouver's legendary Railway Club with the one and only Joey Only and his companera - the lovely and talented Tamara Nile.... The Seattle and Tacoma Jobs with Justice shows were terrific... Vance & Kimberlie Lelli have the most gorgeous house in Tacoma and hosted us in style... and Betsy Pernotto and Bob Marshall and Al and Dottie Dale arranged a wonderful concert in Bellingham. I finally got to meet and hang out with Dana Lyons ... one of the great luminaries of our mooovement ... as well as briefly catching up with Linda Allen, Joe & Flip Breskin and Rob LoPresti ... We had a painless border crossing for a change.

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D. NEW CD!!! - IF I CAN'T DANCE

My new CD is at the duplicator right now. My wonderful friend Randy McSorley of Kaukauna, WI dropped everything to do a terrific job on the new CD cover.. It has 16 great songs on it (not necessarily in this order...) and is very danceable!

1. Emma Goldman
2. Defenders of Marriage
3. My Feet are Tired
4. Dr. Jazz
5. Amelia Earhart
6. Shell Game
7. Let Their Heads Roll
8. Me Case con un Heroe
9. Who's the Criminal?
10. Sheik of Araby/The Blues My Naughty Sweetie...
11. Days of the Theocracy
12. Too Much Monkey Business
13. Your Mind is on Vacation
14. The Dutchman
15. Phil the Fluter's Jam
16. Lullaby

It sounds absolutely fabulous. Doug Wilkin did a fantastic job recording, mixing, mastering and even some singing and playing on this recording. Longtime fans will notice that some of the best tunes from my 1987 cassette "If I Can't Dance" are included too ... including those famous duets with DC Fitzgerald. This time I'm producing some CDs with a 16 page lyric book and traditional jewel case and some in a more environmentally friendly and slightly more affordable cardboard sleeve with downloadable (if ya want them) liner notes available on my website. Both options should be available soon at CDBaby

93 of you responded to last month's email appeal for help with this project. THANKS so much! I'm so touched by your generosity, and delighted to be listing you in the liner notes.

So far I've spent approximately:

Musicians' wages: $3500
Musicians' pension: $350
Engineering/Mastering/Mixing: $3000

and I still owe:

Duplicating: $3130
Royalties to composers: $2548

and I have substantial promotional and postage costs awaiting me too...

If you meant to be part of this.... it's not too late! because...

D. IT'S TWINS!!!

I realized as I was recording these tunes that I actually have two CDs here... In a couple months I'm going to release the other tunes I recorded (Brave New Christmas, Dump the Bosses Off Your Back, Preacher and the Slave, Cops of the World, Hallelujah, I'm a Bum, Ya Basta and more!) on a CD tentatively titled "Dump the Bosses Off Your Back." It's too late to get your name in the liner notes for "If I Can't Dance" - but $100 now to:

Anne Feeney
7206 Michigan Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15218

will get your name in the liner notes for the October release of "Dump the Bosses off Your Back." If some of you responded right away, I'd sure breathe easier. I spend an awful lot of my life acting on faith in you all... and you've never let me down. I am truly blessed.

I know there's a lot going on right now... I hear there are over 8000 AWOL soldiers at this moment... many of them seeking asylum in Canada... I'm trying to keep abreast of all the breaking news ... It's not easy when I'm doing such an intense tour... I hope you'll let me know what's up ... Stay in touch and keep up the great work!

Love and solidarity

Anne

Fellow Travelers' Advisory from Anne Feeney - JUNE 2006, VOLUME TWO, # 3

You can get this fun-filled once-a-month newsletter by signing up here!

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This isn't a typical Fellow Travelers' Advisory... Sure there are fun links and family news and labor news and tour dates, but this month I'm asking for your help.

I'm in the middle of recording and I'm just about out of money for the project. I'm recording some of the most frequently requested songs that I perform and some fabulous new songs - Let Their Heads Roll, Ya Basta!, Defenders of Marriage, My Feet Are Tired, Days of the Theocracy, Lullaby, Cops of the World, Preacher and the Slave, Hallelujah I'm a Bum, Who's the Criminal Here?, Emma Goldman and more... The tracks sound really terrific -- I've been working with terrific local union musicians and I've found a wonderful engineer, Doug Wilkin, to work with just blocks from my house.

But I need your help! I estimate the remaining cost of this production to be slightly more than $18,000.00 - a hopeless number for me to come up with alone... But if 180 of you can come up with $100 it will happen. This is how I financed "Have You Been to Jail for Justice?" six years ago and I'm hoping for the same magic this time. So far I've gotten contributions from Charlie Bernhardt, Joel Henderson, David Newby & Kathy McElroy, Steffi Domike, Berk Snow, Jill Weldon Merrill, Dave Thornburgh, Mel Packer and Emily DeFerrari, Jim Gorman, Mark Damron, the IWW, John Ames, Carol Gay, Carol Newman, Rose Feurer, Ed Finkelstein, Dan Callahan, Joey Hartman, Dave Johnson, Helena Worthen, Joe Berry -- so I only need 158 more angels/patrons/sponsors/underwriters/true-believers...but I need you soon!

If you can send me $100 before June 15th I'll be most grateful and I'll gladly put your name in the liner notes. Please send it to:

Anne Feeney
7206 Michigan Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15218

and include a note as to if/how you'd like to be listed in the liner notes. Thanks so much!

Some incredibly sweet people have written to offer me $10 or $15 -- Thank you so much... but, I'm like you, $10 or $15 I have... It's trying to come up with a huge lump sum up front to produce a new recording that is beyond my reach. I'm looking for those lucky and wonderful and rare people who have $100 to contribute toward a labor culture/social justice project.

If you've got $15 you don't know what to do with, how about buying a CD? They make great and unusual gifts!

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IMMEDIATE DESTINATIONS:

HOUSTON & COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS

MEREDOSIA, IL

WASHINGTON, DC

THE TRIPLE TROUBLE TOUR WITH DAVE LIPPMAN!!!
JUNE 23-AUGUST 2ND ......

SEATTLE, BELLINGHAM, VANCOUVER, VICTORIA, PORT TOWNSEND, TACOMA, OLYMPIA, PORTLAND, EUGENE, ASHLAND, BANDON, BRICELAND, NEVADA CITY, SAN FRANCISCO, OAKLAND, SAN RAFAEL, PALO ALTO, WATSONVILLE, FELTON & more

THE MARIPOSA FOLK FESTIVAL IN TORONTO

LAUREL, MD
BEIRUT
STOCKHOLM
THE 22nd BREAD AND ROSES FESTIVAL IN LAWRENCE, MA
READING & JIM THORPE, PA
IRELAND

all before the end of September! whew! Get all the details on my Tour Dates page.

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BEIRUT, ANYONE???

If you know someone living in Beirut that you think I should make contact with when I go there in August, please let me know.

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CHRIS CHANDLER IN PITTSBURGH JUNE 9TH

My dear and extraordinarily talented friend Chris Chandler brings his dynamic new show featuring New Orleans piano player David Roe to the Friendship House Concert series here. Details are:

Friday, June 9th, 2006 7:30pm
The Chris Chandler and David Roe Show
Friendship House Concerts
RSVP for directions to this house concert: phone: 412.361.6051 mailto:altes@potomacnet.com

Jim and LLouise Altes are the perfect house concert hosts and you'll have a memorable evening ... don't miss it! If I weren't going to the Kerrville Folk Festival for a few days I would surely be there myself!

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LABOR DAY

I'm very excited to report that I will be performing at the Bread and Roses Festival in Lawrence, MA this year. It's a festival that I've always wanted to play. Information on this year's festival should be up on their website very soon.


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FABULOUS FUN LINK

One of the funniest and cleverest sites on the web... The Yes Men do some really creative speaking of truth to power

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ACTIVIST LINK OF THE MONTH

Tell McDonald's and Chipotle (did you know that McDonald's owns Chipotle???) to Support Fair Wages for Farm Workers

Farm workers who pick tomatoes for McDonald's hamburgers and Chipotle's burritos earn about 45 cents for every 32-pound container of tomatoes they pick, a subpoverty wage that has remained stagnant for almost 30 years.

Although Taco Bell signed an agreement last year with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers to pay an additional one cent per pound for tomatoes it purchases, McDonald's and Chipotle have refused to sign a similar agreement to raise wages in the fields.

Tell McDonald's and Chipotle to support fair wages for farm workers and sign the agreement with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers now.



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DAVID GILL FOR CONGRESS/NATIONAL HEALTH CARE NOW!!

Illinois' 15th Congressional District race features a physician campaigning for single-payer national health care. Check out his website./

I met him during my swing through Champaign/Urbana last weekend and I was very impressed. His district should be on Colbert's "Better Know a District" -- It's a real gerrymandered mess.

If you don't know about HR 676, John Conyers' Universal Health Care Bill, you should. I'm delighted to report that my member of Congress, Mike Doyle, just signed on as a sponsor.

Check out John Conyers' Health Care page and then look to see if your member of Congress is a sponsor.

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BOILERMAKERS 484 LOCKOUT ENDS (see article below this post)

Sunday, June 11th there will be a Hog Roast to honor the sacrifices made during the lockout of the loyal & heroic member/warriors of Boilermakers Local 484

City Park * Hwy 104 * Meredosia, IL - I'm leaving the Kerrville Folk Festival early to be with my locked out brothers and sisters.


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FAMILY NEWS

Cousin Terry Donovan is 60 years old as of the 23rd of May. Bill Feeney, Jill Weldon Merrill, Mary and Tom Weldon and I got together with Terry to celebrate over dinner. See the photo below this post.

Karen McCahill's daughter Erin Brown is expecting a little brother for Henry - Congratulations!

And rumor has it that Kevin McCahill turned 60 in mid-May -- Happy Birthday, Cuz!

I was delighted to get an email from cousin Joseph McCahill, Jr - a guitar player living in Alexandria, VA with his gorgeous wife Mennelle and son, Nicholas. Welcome to the list, Joseph! I'm hoping to get a chance to hang out with you when I come to Silver Spring for the Great Labor Arts Exchange next month.

Aunt Claire's Birthday is June 4th -- I'm not 100% sure, but I think she's 86 this year... you can send her a card : Claire O'Connor, 325 Magnolia Lake Court, Aiken, SC 29803 ... or give her a call - 803.641.9027

My daughter Amy got home from Guatemala and Mexico today. My son Dan and his fiance Monique Murad left for Beirut this afternoon.

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That's it for June! Look for a new CD next month! Yes!!!!

Terry Donovan is 60!

From Left to Right: Tom Weldon, Father Bill Feeney, Anne Feeney, Mary Weldon, Jill Weldon Merrill, Terry (am I really 60?) Donovan

Boilermakers Local 484 Ratifies Contract - The Lockout is Over.....

Thanks to everyone out there who helped these folks last one day longer ... I'll always appreciate your generosity toward them ... and of course, they'll be forever grateful for all the support they received. This is the message I received from Road Warrior Tena Battefeld:


Dear Brothers and Sisters, The Union as a Group, has ratified the company's last offer. We have a contract. Some of us are going back to work, which will be a very different world from what we once knew. Some of us are leaving. Every one of our Union brothers and sisters are very important. We have grown so much closer to each other during the lock-out. We are as strong, as a group, as we have ever been and could ever hope to be. This separation is going to hurt, a lot. God Bless and protect each and every one of you. Did we win?

Anger and feelings of betrayal will fade but never go away. Working for the betrayers and along side the scabs will be an ENORMOUS challenge. We're going to have to suck it up and TRY to get along if we are to succeed. This will be an individual challenge for each of us. Remember in the trials and tribulations to come that you are not alone, we each as individuals will still be a Union and you have brothers and sisters to share the pain. Learn to lean on each other. We still have the numbers and still retain some power in this.

Did we win? Pursuing the NLRB charges, as you heard, could have taken years, with no promise we'd win in the end. Everyone knows the pro-business environment of the present administration. It could be the threat posed by the NLRB to the company had peaked at this point. The company's last offer may have been as good as it was going to get. Maybe. Roll of the dice at this point. We made a decision though and we have to go forward from this point. Hindsight is 20/20 but totally worthless.

Did we win? We have a decent severance for those who won't walk beside us into this den of lions...well maybe den of jackals. The pay rate is back up from the lowest offer. Insurance is changed to the company WE chose. We have caps on increases. I don't like everything else in the contract but I never have. A contract is a combination of what we want and what they want. That's just the way it works. Life's rarely fair. We have fought an enormous fight against a very powerful adversary. We fought them to a standstill and actually pushed them back a few steps. We were helped by so many good people. We stand now at the end of our battle, panting and sweating in the bloodstained sand. Nearly a year from the start, we have a contract agreed to by a majority of our people. Celanese did NOT get all they wanted despite all their money, their subversion of the law or their political influence. We have, as I've said, a long hard fight inside the plant and we all still have the anger and emotional pain to deal with, but not alone. Stand strong...Stand Tall...We WON!!!



This was a message written by one of our brothers and he stated it the way it is, pretty well. I just want to send you all a copy and to let you know how grateful we will always be to all of you. Right at this moment I can’t really tell you how I feel because I don’t know myself. I do want everyone to know that we are still having the June 11 Hog roast and we still wish for everyone to attend if you can.


Believe me some good did come out of this year, I’ve met a lot of wonderful people like yourselves and others. We have to keep standing together and keep fighting these greedy bastard corporations before they destroy each and everyone of us.

IN SOLIDARITY your sister

Tena Battefeld IBB Local 484

Fellow Travelers' Advisory from Anne Feeney - MAY 2006, VOLUME TWO, # 2

IMMEDIATE DESTINATIONS:
Haledon, NJ
Pittsburgh, PA
Detroit, MI
Chicago, IL
Champaign, IL

and then TX (maybe), Washington, DC, and the great left coast summer tour with Dave Lippman.... we could still use some help with a couple dates... any ideas for the 4th of July in southern Oregon? how about the 30th of June or July 1st (my birthday...) near Portland... how about Wed July 26th near Sacramento? and the last four days of July are still wide open on the left coast... check it out & make some suggestions... and if you'd be willing to put up some of our very very cool summer tour posters at one of the towns along our route, email me and i'll send some to you.

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CDs at http://cdbaby.com/all/unionmaid

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IN THIS ISSUE:

Happy MayDay!
April Adventures
The New CD
Organic Bouquets for Mothers' Day
Colbert KOs the Bush Administration
Family News
Tour Dates

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Subscribe to receive the Fellow Travelers' Advisory every month --

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HAPPY MAY DAY!

It's May Day - the real Labor Day... all around the world people will sing The Internationale... and while most people in the US couldn't hum the tune, we'll be singing it in Haledon New Jersey at the Botto House National Labor Museum. I'm writing this month's Fellow Travelers' Advisory from Chicago-- less than 5 files from Waldheim Cemetery where the Haymarket Martyrs are buried.

I'm glad that this month is a little more tranquilo than April - I don't think I've ever had a busier and more exciting month. I'll spend most of May at conferences and in the studio recording a bunch of songs that have already become audience favorites. After I get the new recording off to the duplicator, I hope to end the month in Texas, but I'm still not sure. If you've got some work for me in Austin or Houston or San Antonio, let me know.

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APRIL ADVENTURES

April was way too action-packed to describe in what I promise to keep short monthly newsletter. So many of you wrote to say how much you liked my Florida tour diary (http://www.annefeeney.com/news.html) that I promise to have the April tour diary up on the same site soon. Many many thanks to my fabulous hosts in San Diego - Carolyn and Joel Henderson -- in Madison, Sue Vilbrandt and Willy Lanier -- in Toronto Jonathan and Sara Marlowe and in Portland, OR -- Connie and Kenny Cohen


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THE NEW CD

I postponed the new recording until my guitar is out of the hospital (soon, very soon, I hope....). I'll be going back into the studio in mid-May. A very talented engineer has opened up a great studio within walking distance of my house and I intend to start recording there on May 8th. If you can send me $100 to help underwrite the considerable costs of producing a new CD, I'd be extremely grateful. Send it to me at 7206 Michigan Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15218 - and let me know if you'd like to have your name in the THANK YOU section of the CD liner notes.

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HAPPY ORGANIC MOTHERS' DAY!

This year send Mom an organic bouquet. The floral industry is laden with pesticides and unsustainable agricultural practices, as well as worker abuses. Now you don't need to inflict pain on the planet or other workers when you send Mom some flowers...
Check out:

http://www.organicbouquet.com/Info.aspx?pid=176


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STEPHEN COLBERT SKEWERS W


This is where you can watch Stephen Colbert do a brilliant and hilarious job of taking the Bush administration to the woodshed as W and Laura sit less than 10 feet away at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. This aired on CSPAN last night and I watched it with my wonderful friends Sue Vilbrandt and Willy Lanier. This is truly MUST SEE TV!!!

Here are a couple Colbert quips:

"I believe that the government that governs best is a government that governs least, and by these standards we have set up a fabulous government in Iraq."

"When the president decides something on Monday, he still believes it on Wednesday - no matter what happened Tuesday."

And turning his attention to the White House correspondents themselves, Colbert says:

"Let's review the rules. Here's how it works. The president makes decisions, he’s the decider. The press secretary announces those decisions, and you people of the press type those decisions down. Make, announce, type. Put them through a spell check and go home. Get to know your family again. Make love to your wife. Write that novel you got kicking around in your head. You know, the one about the intrepid Washington reporter with the courage to stand up to the administration. You know--fiction."


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FAMILY NEWS

My almost-daughter, Monique Murad, received a fabulous fellowship to go study in Beirut this summer. My son Dan will go with her. I hope to go visit them.

My San Diego adventures included a visit to my cousin Peggy McCahill Duncan. Peggy is the extraordinary mom of four year old Connor and 9 month old triplets Emma, Colin and Tara. They are all completely charming children and suffice it to say that there are *not* enough hours in the day for anyone to keep up with them.

My cousin Mardy McCahill is a family physician and psychiatrist who has developed, secured funding for and implemented a terrific program that, in cooperation with local churches, delivers health care to uninsured people via a $700,000 mobile doctor's office that travels all around San Diego. What a gal!

And her husband Jim is grandpa to these triplets. He provides meals-on-wheels for the triplets on an almost daily basis. (He's a fabulous cook, but I think it may be impairing his Boggle skills -- I whomped him on my too-brief visit with this wonderful branch of my extended family.)

My daughter Amy is a real globetrotter this month. She got back from Hawaii in time to meet me in Portland and drive me and my dear friend Connie Cohen up to Olympia for my show there. We stopped at the fabulous Olympus Spa in Tacoma and steeped like teabags for hours in their many pools. Then Amy closed up her apartment and headed to Oaxaca for a month. I hope to catch up with her in Texas at the end of May.

Unfortunately cousin Bill won't be able to officiate at the baptism of Kathleen and Ross's latest addition - Rosalie - in New Orleans on May 7th -- it's First Holy Communion at Immaculate Conception Parish where he's the pastor. But Kay and Tony Mumphrey are back in New Orleans.

And in Manhattan, cousin Erin McCahill is awaiting the birth of her second son in August - mazel tov!

Cousin Kevin McCahill turns 60 this month - my sister Kathleen turns 53 on May 3rd (she has a mutual birthday with Pete Seeger!).

Mary and Tom Weldon celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a family gala at daughter Jill's (& husband Steve Merrill's) beautiful house in Murrysville, PA. The family films and photos are now available on DVD.




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THE DATES............


Monday, May 1st, 2006 7:00 PM
May Day at Botto House
Botto House American Labor Museum
83 Norwood St
Haledon, NJ
Price: free
with the Solidarity Singers, Chris Chandler & David Roe, George Mann & Julius Margolin and more .... come celebrate May Day at the birthplace of the Paterson Silk Strike!

Tuesday, May 2nd, 2006 7:00 PM
CD Release Party for DC Fitzgerald and Bob Beach
Club Cafe
56-58 South 12th Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15203
http://clubcafelive.com
I'll be opening this show, so don't be late!! This will be lots of fun.

May 5th-7th
Labor Notes
Hyatt Regency Hotel
Dearborn, MI
http://labornotes.org/conferences/details.shtml

May 17th-20th
Regina Polk Conference for Union Women
Pheasant Run Resort
St Charles, IL


Saturday, May 20th, 2006 8:00 PM
Benefit Concert for Boilermakers' Local 484
Channing Murray Foundation
Matthews & Oregon
Champaign, IL
this concert will be with Darrin Drda's wonderful band "The Theory of Everything." it will be great!

Coming up in June and July - the great left coast Triple Trouble summer tour with Dave Lippman and his sinister-but-hilarious alter ego George Shrub, the singing CIA agent

.... we could still use some help with a couple dates... any ideas for the 4th of July in southern Oregon?

how about the 30th of June or July 1st (my birthday...) near Portland...

how about Wed July 26th near Sacramento?

and the last four days of July are still wide open on the left coast... check it out & make some suggestions...

and if you'd be willing to put up some of our very very cool summer tour posters at one of the towns along our route, email me and i'll send some to you.