Sad Reminder on Unions’ History of Race Relations

We’ve discussed before — see here — the sad history some unions (especially those in the construction industry) have with racism. The latest story to follow comes from Philadelphia:

In light of an alleged racial-harassment incident at the site of the new Comcast tower, a prominent African American business activist yesterday called for the hiring of more minority construction workers and better treatment for them once they get a job …

Crawley participated in a demonstration yesterday at the Comcast site that was spurred by at Oct. 1 incident involving Paul Solomon, an African American hoist operator, and a white member of the glaziers’ union. Solomon said yesterday that the glazier shook a noose at him as he stopped his hoist at the 45th floor. “He looked me in my eyes and told me he wanted to hang somebody,” Solomon said. He said the man later tried to say he was joking. Solomon said he viewed the incident as a “hate crime.”

Crawley said he had heard from other African American construction workers who say they, too, have faced harassment on the job. The Comcast incident, he said, was “just the tip of the iceberg. It was symptomatic of a broader issue. You could have had that demonstration anywhere.”