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There Is an Urgent Need for Clergy and People of Faith to Claim the Fullness ofOur Faith and Stand with the Least Among Us. Our Souls Are At Stake!Marching In Mississippi: The Southern Faith, Labor and Community Alliance (SFLCA) was initiated in Greensboro in July of2005. It held its first national conference in July of 2006 in Memphis, Tennessee. The Memphis conference was a powerful experience of

Bible study and spiritual grounding, along with rich panel discussions on relevant issues and participation in direct action. Pictured above

is the front end of more than 300 people marching in support of the Quebecor workers in Olive Branch, Mississippi. Pictured from left to

right are the Rev. Dr. LaSimba M. Gray, Jr., Memphis; Rev. James Evans, Mississippi; Father Jeffery Tobin, Memphis; Rev. J. Herbert

Nelson, Alycia Nelson, and Rev. Gail Nelson, Memphis; and Mrs. Cathy Garner, New Light Missionary Baptist Church, Greensboro.

The 1968 Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike was a

major part of the SFLCA Memphis conference discussion.

Pictured to the left is part of the sanitation workers panel: Ms.Hattie Jackson, a school teacher who supported the workers;

Rev. Ezekiel Bell, a minister in support of the struggle; Mr.

Taylor Rogers, a 1968 sanitation worker; and Rev. Frank

McRae, a friend of the Mayor of Memphis in 1968. Rev.

McRae tried unsuccessful to get the mayor to change his posi-tion on the Memphis sanitation workers.

Prayer is a major part of the struggle.Among those pictured below is Rev. Nelson Johnson of

Greensboro, NC, a founding member of the SFLCA, and Rev.

Alexia Salvatierra of Los Angeles, California, leading those

assembled at the Quebecor plant in prayer.

Together we m ust build a truly transformative moveme nt.

The SFLCA believes that a deeply anchored coalition of faith, labor and com-

munity needs to be forged, especially in the South. In such a coalition, the

rootedness, love and persistence of faith must be merged with the urgency,

energy and practical needs of workers and poor people in general. All the or-

ganizations and groups need to strive for both greater understanding and

greater unity. The SFLCA is committed to reclaiming, cultivating and nurtur-

ing a depth of faith, a depth that helps us to see justice for workers as central to

our faith calling. Dr. King was striving to forge a culture of beloved commu-

nitywhere worker justice was key when he gave his life in Memphis.The struggle for justice by the Raleigh Sanitation workers and the Smith-

field Tar Heel Plant workers might provide a historic opportunity to forge

a transformative social movement in North Carolina and the South.

Southern Faith, Labor and

Community AllianceP.O. Box 875 Greensboro, NC 27402 (336) 230-0001

email: marilynb@belovedcommunitycenter.org_________________________________________________________

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SFLCA Supports Smithfield Workers!Participating in the August 30th Justice at Smithfield Rallyin Richmond, Virginia were SFLCA representatives fromGreensboro and Winston Salem. Pictured from left toright, are Mrs. Marilyn Baird, Rev. Nelson Johnson, Rev.John Mendez, Ms. Deborah Compton-Holt. The I-85 bustrip included High Point, Greensboro, Winston Salem, andDurham representatives. Another bus transported NorthCarolinians along I-95. Rev. Johnson and Rev. Mendezdelivered powerful and prophetic messages at Cedar StreetBaptist Church. The group marched from the church to the

Jefferson Davis Hotel, the site of the Smithfield sharehold-ers meeting. Rev. Johnson and Rev. Mendez were amongten clergy members who attended the shareholders meetingto demand justice for the workers.

On August 30, 2006, approximately 500 people, including Smithfield workers, clergy, union members and

community leaders, gathered in Richmond, Virginia in support of Smithfield workers located in Tar Heel,

North Carolina. The group held a prayerful and spirit-filled rally at the Cedar Street Baptist Church. In ad-

dition to deeply inspiring reflections by religious leaders, workers from Smithfield moved many to tears, asthey told of horrific experiences in the plant. Pictured below is a delegation from Raleigh in support of the

Smithfield Struggle. We are called to stand with workers who are the least among us!

Youth Should Lead!

Youth are an absolute essential party to the

struggle for justice and social transforma-

tion. The SFLCA took a delegation of more

than 40 youth from Greensboro, Winston

Salem, Eden and Hickory, North Carolina to

the historic conference in Memphis. The

young people attended the Martin Luther

King, Jr. Museum, had lively discussions,

formed a choir and sang, formed exercise

and arts groups, and participated in demon-

strations to support struggling workers at

Quebecor Printing Company. Pictured on

the left is part of the NC youth delegation.

The Struggle for Worker Justice at Smithfield Could Initiate a Major

Social Justice Movement in North Carolina and the South