THE_RACE_TO_THE_BOTTOM_DVD_FINAL

A video montage with soundtrack of Paulette Meier's original song, "The Race to the Bottom," written to protest the privatization of public sector jobs and the current attack on public employee unions in statehouses around the country. The video, produced by documentary filmmaker/activist Barbara Wolf, includes photos of public employees on the job and photos of protest rallies in Wisconsin and Ohio in 2011, when thousands gathered to oppose Republican legislation cutting unions' rights to bargain collectively for public workers. Paulette Meier, a long time singer/songwriter from Cincinnati who has led songs at many a rally for peace and social justice, works as a instructional assistant (IA) in Cincinnati Public Schools and is a member of AFSCME, Local 232. Her job exists because the teachers' union, CFT, bargained to provide classes over a certain limit with IA's. SB 5 in Ohio prohibits teachers from bargaining over things like class size now, certain to result in less help for students.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Public workers
• SB 5
• Issue 2
• Ohio
• privatization
• attack on public workers
• unions
• public employees
• Kasich
• protests
• folk music
• current issues
• Woodie Guthrie tradition
• Wisconsin uprising

[lessonsongsmusic]

Thanks, Katja; I'm obviously in total agreement. I'm not sure how anyone who has to work for a living can buy the idea that Issue 2 is in our best interest or that it is the way to solve the problem with government deficits. Why aren't Fox News types screaming about the amount of money that's gone into destroying and "re-building" Iraq and Afghanistan? (And our money that's been diverted into the hands of wealthy, corrupt, private corporate owners in the process?)

[lessonsongsmusic]

"What sort of person does not think there is anything wrong with asking the folks that are tasked with teaching our children to take a 20% cut on a $50,000 annual salary, but think it's a terrible idea to ask millionaires to pay an additional 3% more in taxes?" A quotation being circulated on the internet that seemed appropriate to add here. -- Paulette Meier

[JoaninDC]

Excellent! Sounds like the anthem for Occupy Wall Street. Keep it going.

[dkmiller100]

awesome...insightful message set to beautiful voice.

[rverzuh]

Great lyrics and right on the mark. Keep occupying Wall Street all over the world! Ron Verzuh

[ellenbierhorst]

right on sister!

[a354174]

@lessonsongsmusic

The same person that supports job creation and public employees paying their fair share.

[lamourlupus]

Owners and their management with human resources do not care about quality and cut corners.

[guitarfrog59]

The race to the bottom is going on all over America, not only in Ohio. Thanks for describing it so tunefully!

[carleenhealy]

Way to go! Great video, we love it and the song. Spreading the message through music is inspiring!

ps- there is a 1st grade class at my school that is nearing 40 students... crazy.

[lessonsongsmusic]

@JDagger1970 Well said! Thanks!