Dear Colleagues,
Please attend and let your students know about this fantastic educational event. The Progressive Labor Summit is FREE to all AFT Guild Local 1931 members and our STUDENTS. It’s a great opportunity to learn more about local, labor, community activism, and politics. All are welcome. This year’s event will feature a breakout session with AFT VPs Jim Miller and Kelly Mayhew from 11:00 to 1:00: “The Modern Political History of San Diego” with SD City Councilperson Sean Elo-Rivera and County Board of Supervisors member Monica Montgomery Steppe at the SD Convention Center, Hall B, Room 9. Everyone there will get a free copy of Miller and Mayhew’s new book of interviews of local activists and labor leaders, Beyond the Theme Park: Struggle and Solidarity Under the San Diego Sun sponsored by AFT, the Center on Policy Initiatives, and the UCSD Labor Center.
For more information about the Progressive Labor Summit and the link for free registration, see below.
In Solidarity,
Jim
Jim Mahler, President
AFT Guild, Local 1931
The Progressive Labor Summit is BACK for the 9th year!
Bringing together hundreds of union members, policy makers, and community allies, our ‘family reunion’ every year is our opportunity to learn and collaborate with each other, strengthen community connections, and build the solidarity we need to keep union power growing through the tough times and the good.
This year’s gathering at the Progressive Labor Summit will be more important than ever. Especially because it’s clear from watching communities around the country stand up against oppressive and even violent tactics seeking to break us down and break us apart that, essentially, it’s up to us. No one is coming to save us, but us. We cannot rely on our usual systems, structures, or leaders to function or act as we’d hope. So we’re going to have to step up and do the hard and scary and inspiring things ourselves. Together.
We hope you’ll join us! All AFT members, students, friends and family members can come for free by following this link to register: www.eventbrite.com/e/1985023476654/?discount=PLSummit26_AFT1931, You’ll get free breakfast, lunch, and drinks, along with a day packed with amazing discussions, workshops, and opportunities to meet and network with other like-minded San Diegan working people who care. Please share this opportunity with your colleagues and students.
The 2026 Progressive Labor Summit Agenda Plenary Sessions (9 AM – 10:50 AM and 12:30 PM – 4:30 PM) Feature:
Workers Rising – Rank and file workers who are fighting against corporate and governmental assaults on working people discuss what they’re facing and the role of their unions in fighting back against exploitation and reckless management. With Jennie Mesmer (LIUNA Local 300), Dan Arel (UDW), Maria Coronel (UNITE HERE Local 30, UNAC-UHCP, and Darshana Patel (CA Assemblymember) as moderator.
It’s Built This Way on Purpose – If we know we need to create real systemic change, we have to assess and understand the conditions and systems as they are designed and why they work the way they do. With Kyra Greene (Center on Policy Initiatives), Henry Foster (San Diego City Council), Hayden Gore (Teacher, High Tech Middle Chula Vista), Heather Ferbert (San Diego City Attorney), and Eric Joyce (Oceanside City Council) as moderator.
The Future Has a Script – As Artificial Intelligence becomes more and more common in the workplace, how do we ensure that workers are being supported and not replaced? With Lorena Gonzalez (CA Federation of Labor Unions), Josh Miller-Lewis (More Perfect Union), Misha Khan (UC Berkeley Labor Center), and Satomi Rash-Ziegler (UCSD Labor Center) as moderator.
The Future Is Unwritten: Youth Resistance Beyond Reform in a World Without Rules – As debate continues over generational change among political leaders, it’s young people who will inherit the world and all the consequences of our action or inaction. And increasingly, they aren’t waiting around to see what they’re left with. How are young people leaning in to shape their own future, and what priorities should we be working alongside them to achieve right now? With Paola Godinez (IATSE Local 122), Tajhay Banks (Student Organizer at SDSU), Eliana Hernandez (UCSD Graduate Student and Organizer), Sheila Benitez (Student Organizer, Lincoln High School), Jamie Estellar (AFT Intern), and Fernanda Flores (IATSE Local 122) as moderator.
All In Array – While many parts of the country have seen a crisis of faith when it comes to institutions and elected leaders, there’s been a wave of bottom-up energy across worker spaces, resulting in complimentary movements within organized labor, the Democratic Party, Working Families Party, and Democratic Socialists of America. How are these different fronts of the same movement defining their roles, working to push in the same direction, and advance the issues of working people from multiple angles? Brigette Browning (San Diego & Imperial Counties Labor Council), Connor Bennett (Democratic Socialists of America, San Diego), Jorge Contreras (CA Working Families Party), Will Rodriguez-Kennedy (San Diego County Democratic Party), and Paloma Aguirre (County Board of Supervisors) as moderator.
Keynote Conversation – Some days it feels like the threats and challenges are coming from all sides at once. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has the job of holding up and pushing back on every front. It’s a big responsibility, but also provides a unique perspective on the full picture of our opportunity to build a coherent and strategic movement that not only overcomes our current risks but rebuilds a progressive, worker-centric system on the other side. Rob Bonta (CA Attorney General) and Carol Kim (San Diego County Building & Construction Trades Council)
Keynote Speaker – Minneapolis wasn’t many people’s guess as to where the front line would ultimately be in the pushback against the violent militarization of federal law enforcement this year. But fortunately, it was a place where labor and community groups had spent years doing the deep organizing and coalition building to stand up effectively, together. What was it like on the ground, how did the community mobilize so many people who had never done this work before, and what did it take in the years leading up to this moment to be ready when crisis came? Todd Dahlstrom (Minnesota AFL-CIO)
Breakout sessions (10:55 AM to 12:05 PM) will include the following:
OK But Seriously. What Are We Doing About Housing? – Why are we letting corporations and landlords dictate housing policy and how do we take it back? – With speakers including Zach Murray (ACCE), Nicole Lillie (Our Time To Act), Kip Eischen (Community Planning Board Member), AJ Estrada (San Diego County Building & Construction Trades Council), and moderator, Joe LaCava (San Diego City Council).
Modern Political History of San Diego – San Diego has gone through many dramatic political changes in the space of just one political generation. It includes a huge voter swing to the left, the rise and fall of Carl DeMaio’s anti-worker movement, a pension crisis, the implementation of the Strong Mayor system of government, and the emergence of labor as a major force in policymaking region-wide. How do we put this in context, and what does it teach us about the risks and opportunities of taking over the levers of governance? With Monica Montgomery-Steppe (County Board of Supervisors), Sean Elo-Rivera (San Diego City Council), Lucas O’Connor (Progressive Labor Alliance), Jim Miller (City College, AFT 1931), and Kelly Mayhew (City College, AFT 1931).
The Climate is Changing, So Are We – Amid dramatic uncertainty at the federal level, accelerating climate disasters, and crumbling infrastructure, the challenge to build a world for the climate to come is daunting. But public agencies, environmental justice advocates, and unions are building new coalitions and innovative new partnership models to ensure that we’re not only building the infrastructure we need to make it on our rapidly changing planet, but that we’re building it with jobs that will allow sustainable work to support sustainable lives for working families. With Gordon Samuel (San Diego Community Power), Amy Castañeda (Environmental Health Coalition), Cristina Marquez (IBEW Local 569), Jeff Hunerlach (Climate Jobs California), and Sid Voorakkara (San Diego Unified Port Commission) as moderator.
The Only Free Lunch is at This Event: Public Revenue and Paying for Society – At the end of the day, so much of our government’s ability to fulfill its purpose comes down to revenue. Services and infrastructure simply do cost money. How are workers at multiple levels of state and local government working to advance a more equitable and functional public revenue system to ensure that people get the government they need and deserve? With Joni Vargas, Jessica Ulstad, Molly Weber, and Cody Petterson as moderator.
Big Brother is Watching You: Surveillance of Workers – Surveillance technology is reaching further and further into the lives of both workers and consumers, dehumanizing us in workplaces and threatening basic privacy. How can this technology be deployed responsibly, and how can workers and consumers work together to protect against the creeping invasion of basic privacy? With Diamond Wallace (CA Federation of Labor Unions), Chris Ward (CA Assembly), and CJ Valasek (Center on Policy Initiatives) as moderator
Community Mobilization Amid Militarized ICE – The rapid escalation of repressive, violent and increasingly deadly tactics by federal agents targeting our immigrant communities have shocked millions of Americans and inspired community mobilization to protect each other and develop new tactics and networks to keep neighbors and families safe. What is the full reality of what we’re facing here in San Diego and across the country, what are we learning from other cities, and how is San Diego mobilizing and coming together to protect our neighbors? With Dr. Arcela Nuñez-Alvarez (Universidad Popular), Pedro Rios (American Friends Service Committee), Annie Rios (Criminal Defense/Human Rights attorney), Todd Dahlstrom (Minnesota AFL-CIO), Debbie Prokopf (Minnesota Newspaper & Communications Guild), and Marco Briones (San Diego & Imperial Counties Labor Council) as moderator
Gentrification of the Democratic Party – Amid the dramatic shifts in national politics over the last few decades, the debate continues to rage on the left about who will be part of a successful coalition, and how to build a movement that can work together in solidarity with purpose and vigor to be a compelling alternative to those currently wielding power. How have so many traditional core constituencies of the Democratic Party slipped away, and how can we reassemble a powerful, diverse coalition of all working people? With David Johnson (IBEW Local 569), Christian Ramirez (SEIU-USWW), Tyler Renner (PATH), Stephanie Wells (San Diego Democratic Party), and moderator Rudy Gonzalez (San Francisco Building & Construction Trades Council).
Single Payer Healthcare – It’s way too expensive, and way too difficult, to be sick in this country. Profits continue to skyrocket and working people continue to struggle to cover the basic costs of just staying alive and well. Where do things stand in the push for Single Payer Healthcare, what are the challenges and opportunities ahead to ensure that everyone has access to quality healthcare in this country? With Michael Lighty (NUHW), Max Cotterill (CNA), and Nadia Farjood (Grossmont Healthcare District) as moderator
(Speakers still being added!)
2026 Progressive Labor Summit
Saturday, April 11
San Diego Convention Center, 111 Harbor Dr, San Diego, CA 92101 (map)
Hall B, Room
Breakfast, lunch, and reception with refreshments included!