Tonight, at the Community Book Center in the 7th Ward, the authors of the new book The Accidental American and Danny Glover came to speak and support the work of Restaurant Opportunities Center-New Orleans. It is the local chapter of a organizing/union/advocacy group started in New York City within the last few years. One of the co-authors of the book, Fekkak Mamdouh, was a Morrocan-born waiter at a restaurant in the World Trade Center whose life was thrown into turmoil on 9/11. Mamdouh and Renku Sen, his co-author who works at the Applied Research Center, “describe how members of the largely immigrant food industry workforce managed to overcome divisions in the aftermath of 9/11 and form the Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York to fight for jobs and more equitable treatment.”
Sen read from the book, Mamdouh told his personal story and the need for organizing, and special guest Danny Glover pinpointed the need “to connect the dots” between various causes so that we can support each others work. Then local ROC organizers took center stage, echoing their sentiments and agitating sympathizers to become supporters in a soon-to-be public campaign. Solidarity forever!
The Education of a Bookshop Clerk 