The 1199SEIU Women’s Caucus came together to mark International Women’s Day with a vibrant costume parade celebrating the diversity of ethnicities and nations in our union. Honoring this year’s theme that Women are the Heartbeat of the Nations, members heard from our Political Director, Gabby Seay, about how 2018 saw a record number of women becoming law-makers both in Washington DC and in the New York State Capitol in Albany.

One of those women is Leticia James, who attended the gathering in the 1199 auditorium. She recently made history as the first African-American as well as the first woman to be elected Attorney General for New York State.

“It was a ground-breaking, glass ceiling-shattering year in 2018. Don’t let this be a moment. Let this be a movement,” said James, “In 2020 we’re coming for the orange man.”

The power of 1199 is not just exercised in the ballot box. Three members were also singled out for their outstanding work for the union and presented with the Audrey Smith-Campbell award which is given in memory of an 1199 activist who died of an acute asthma attack on her way to the picket line at Kingsbridge Heights Rehabilitation Care Center in the Bronx in 2008.

This year’s winners were: Cynthia Sadler, a CNA at Downtown Brooklyn Nursing and Rehabilitation Center; Oksana Solilyak, an HHA from the Personal Touch agency and Antoinette Rose, a Medical Records Analyst at Montefiore Medical Center.