Labor Party Press - Conversation with Shirley Faircloth

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January, 1999 Labor Party Press

Conversation with
Shirley Faircloth

Shirley Faircloth was one of the two dozen convention delegates from the California Nurses Association. She is a retired nurse, and is still active in her union.

I really enjoyed the convention — and I’m not much of a meeting person. It struck me that the Labor Party is probably the most likely of the new third parties to get somewhere, because it draws on the unions. Also, I think the main fight these days is against the global market and multinationals — and I felt that was really getting addressed.

There are plenty of things I don’t agree with. But overall, I was heartened by the convention.

I was taken by the stories of the people who were on strike [who spoke during the convention’s "solidarity hour"]. I went to the reception that they held. And just being there really cemented it for me that I’m in the right place.

I think it’s good that the Labor Party is launching a healthcare campaign. People are hungry for better healthcare. But we have to get through to people that it’s okay for the government to be involved in the system. There is some movement now in California to build for healthcare reform, but it’s mostly local. There are a lot of people who want to work on it, but it’s going to take a lot of energy to mount such a big campaign.

I was glad that the choice language got settled the way it did. It didn’t matter to me whether we used the word "abortion." I was happy that FLOC stayed with us. In a way, they asked us for their blessing, and it seems as though they got it. I think there was a respect for their beliefs, and that’s good. But it is a tough issue.

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