By William Thornton | wthornton@al.com
“How you doin’?” asked the tall, lean stranger behind the pale blue surgical mask.
He was standing outside the main entrance to Amazon’s Bessemer fulfillment center this afternoon, holding a sign up for cars leaving the complex. The sign read, “Remember Mail Your Yes Ballot.” Occasionally, he gave a wave as the sun went down behind him.
“Hey, you know who that is?” one person told a driver. “That’s Danny Glover!”
“Stay strong!” Glover said, giving a thumbs up. The actor was in Bessemer this afternoon showing his support for workers looking to organize at the warehouse. A mail-in vote began earlier this month among more than 5,000 employees at the center to see if they want representation by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).
Here is full coverage of the Alabama Amazon unionization effort
The votes will be counted in late March. If approved, the workers would be represented by the RWDSU.
Perhaps best known for the “Lethal Weapon” movies, Glover, 74, also recorded a video message supporting workers at the plant. Glover has shown support in the past for various causes, including unions, but he said this is his first public appearance as an activist since the COVID-19 pandemic began last year
This is only my second time outside San Francisco since this started,” he said. “Being cooped up for 11 months, you’ll hear your knees snap and pop.”
Glover said both of his parents were union members, and his mother was born in Georgia.
“It’s about justice,” Glover said. “The union is about looking out for the welfare of workers, and is willing to stand up and fight for justice….It’s just one step, among the many steps, that are being taken around the country, in the service of justice.”
Glover said he was inspired not only by Alabama’s history in the civil rights movement, but also it’s labor history, going back to coal miner’s who organized in the late 19th century.