Local 237 hosted a Black History Month Celebration with a program featuring two distinguished speakers, Charles Smith and Jesse Epps, who presented unique views of the struggle for justice as it was 40 years ago and as it continues today.

The first presenter, Charles Smith, Northeast Regional Director of the NBA Players Association and former NBA basketball player, towered over the podium at 6-foot-10- inches tall. He recalled playing for the Los Angeles Clippers and serving as a rookie union rep. “I was the youngest person at a pension meeting,” said Smith, noting, “This is real business.”

When the union was split between all-stars and the rank-andfile, Smith observed “a lot of lawyering,” participated in long discussions to determine what members wanted, and learned the value of unions. “The key is the process,” said Smith. “It’s what unions do.”


President Floyd shakes hands with Charles Smith, northeast regional director of the NBA Players Association and former NBA basketball player.

Jesse Epps, Founder of the National Union of American Families, was with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Memphis, Tenn., as an AFSCME leader assisting the striking sanitation workers 40 years ago.

Though Epps is much shorter in stature than Smith, he has confronted giant challenges to justice for half a century as a labor leader and civil rights activist. “President Gregory Floyd is in the middle of a battle,” said Epps, noting the steep decline in union membership throughout the nation. “We don’t need dues paying members,” he added. “We need active trade unionists to serve the greater good. That’s your mission.”


Enjoying the program are, from left, Leased Housing Managers Regina Warren and Eula Powell, who work at Housing Authority's Bronx office. Joining them is Housing Assistant Dorothy Clinton, who works at the Brooklyn application office.

Honoring the speakers as “unsung heroes,” President Floyd presented each with a “Labor Leader Award.” Upon receiving his plaque, Epps quipped about the difference in height of he and Smith. He remarked that the audience had seen “the long and the short of it.” When the laughter subsided, he also reminded listeners that “folks have laid down their lives for the right to sit here tonight.”

The Black History Month Celebration, held Feb. 29, included a catered dinner and music by DJ Thomas Farrow.