Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 Noel Freeman released a statement this morning pointing out the confusion that has been caused by his opponent, C.O. Bradford regarding an SEIU #1 endorsement he has claimed.
Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1 confirmed Tuesday during a screening interview with City Council At-Large Position 4 candidate Noel Freeman that his opponent, C.O. Bradford, has falsely claimed to have received its endorsement.
Bradford issued a press release on August 17, 2009 announcing he had received SEIU’s endorsement. According to SEIU officials, Bradford had been asked to remove the endorsement from his campaign website more than a week ago, but as of 11:00 pm on September 1st, the endorsement still appeared on the website.
“I find it disappointing my opponent would attempt to mislead voters by claiming an endorsement he does not have.” Freeman said. “My opponent’s claim that he received SEIU’s endorsement more than two weeks before they even finished screening candidates in this race does a tremendous disservice to the proud men and women of SEIU who take the political process seriously.”
One of the chiefs of the AFL/CIO responded with a general statement.
C.O. “Brad” Bradford does have Labor’s endorsement…I am the person that told C. O. Bradford that he had the endorse-ment of the Harris County AFL-CIO Council and of all of the Unions affiliated with it – including SEIU, Local 1. It is possible that SEIU, Local 1, is reserving their endorsement and they have every right to do so. I gave C. O. Bradford the wrong information…The Unions of the Harris County AFL-CIO Council did endorse C. O. Bradford. If one or two of the 77 Unions choose to do otherwise, this is still an endorsement of the whole…”
And this much is true, the Harris County AFL/CIO Council did endorse the former chief of police under former Mayor Lee Brown. But is the AFL/CIO, being a council of organizations that they say include SEIU, representative of the whole, or just another organization? I will let them argue that out.
But here’s a question. Didn’t SEIU disaffiliate from AFL/CIO to form the Change to Win organization? How did this affect Houston?
SEIU and four other Change to Win unions – the Teamsters, UNITE HERE, the United Food and Commercial Workers and the Carpenters – disaffiliated from the AFL-CIO, and along with the Laborers and the United Farm Workers, are developing strategic, industry-based organizing campaigns to unite workers’ strength.
SEIU, representative of a certain and quite diverse segment of workers, as well as being the fastest growing Union in Houston, Texas, and America, deserves to be heard individually. Some argue that SEIU has made Unions popular again, and as the son of a Union man, I agree with that notion.
Noel Freeman is also a member of HOPE, which represents City employees.
I guess some clarity really is necessary, with all due respect to my Union friends.
Disclaimer: It is known that Stace Medellin and DosCentavos.net is a supporter of Noel Freeman.
