By Brooklynn Wong
While the annual National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Show was the headliner in Anaheim two weeks ago, there was a pretty significant side show.
A local union put together a large protest, and by the end of the evening, a City Council member and 20 other individuals had been arrested.
And the sentiment continued into last week’s City Council Meeting and elicited some rhetorical fireworks.
Unite Here Local 11 is a union made up of approximately 29,000 hotel, restaurant, airport, sports arena and convention center workers across Southern California and Arizona.
The union members from Anaheim, largely those employed at the Sheraton Park and Anaheim Hilton hotels, seized the opportunity of NAMM, where thousands of businesspeople were in town and they would draw lots of attention, to gather at the intersection of Harbor and Katella and protest, seeking higher pay and healthcare.
On Jan. 24, for about two hours in the evening, hundreds of peaceful protestors picketed in the streets. They did, at times, gather in the streets and block traffic, at one point linking arms across the middle of the road, preventing cars already stopped there from proceeding.
Police were on hand, and ultimately 21 people were ticketed, cited and released, for loitering and refusing to leave.
Included in those arrested was Councilman Dr. Jose F. Moreno. He, likewise, was cited and then released that evening.
And just five days later, at Jan. 29’s City Council meeting, many of the protestors again gathered, wearing their red “Unite Here” t-shirts, and during public comments, many of the union members spoke with high praise for Moreno, calling him a hero and a role model for his participation in the civil disobedience.
One resident named Shakeel Syed thanked and praised Moreno “for keeping democracy alive in a country where democracy is dying.”
A couple of individuals did speak against Moreno’s actions, calling it “embarrassing” and saying he should do “something constructive” like put his efforts toward the homeless issue. One woman said he “disrespected his colleagues and constituents.”
These individuals were booed and criticized by the large crowd of union members and their sympathizers that were there.
Moreno mostly remained tight-lipped about his actions during the meeting.
Council member Trevor O’Neil, at one point, after several speakers had praised Moreno, asked the City Attorney whether this amount of time could be spent addressing something that was not an item listed on the agenda as up for discussion or vote.
The City Attorney permitted the people to continue speaking about Moreno’s actions in the protest, but only after Moreno himself confronted O’Neil and asked why people ought not be able to talk about it.
A short but spirited exchange followed before the City Attorney and Mayor stopped the discussion and continued the meeting.
Out of roughly 40 speakers during public comments, about two thirds were speaking about Moreno.
