Episode 135 - Stop the Shop

This week, Roqayah and Kumars are joined by Donald Borenstein, a writer, journalist, and filmmaker who's been covering the Stop & Shop supermarket strike for the worker-owned streaming platform Means TV. Donald, who made the 500 mile journey across New England in order to document the 11-day strike, describes what lead approximately 31,000 workers, represented by United Food and Commercial Workers, to picket Stop & Shop locations in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Donald explains the tactics workers utilized to pressure management into conceding and to prevent anyone from crossing picket lines. Donald goes on to describes the impact of appearances by Democratic presidential candidates at picket lines—including Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren—who spoke in support of striking workers. We try to separate the tepid lip service from some candidates from what might be better faith outreach of others. The crew also examines what the success of the Stop & Shop strike means for private sector unions, specifically in the grocery sector. You can follow Donald on Twitter @Boringstein, and keep up with their Stop & Shop strike coverage on Means TV. If you want to support the show and receive access to tons of bonus content, subscribe on our Patreon for as little as $5 a month. Also, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the show on iTunes. We can't do this show without your support!!!