Tuesday, December 8

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English captions and a call line for live interpretation into Spanish will be available.

6:55 PM Pre-show 

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 7 PM Opening Welcome with Host Dr. Patricia Campos-Medina

Reflections on the Year from Brandworkers Members

Remembering Juan Nito

Dr. Patricia Campos-Medina in Conversation with Brandworkers Executive Director, Daniel Gross

Brandworkers Members on How We Build Solidarity

Conversations with Champion of Economic Justice Honorees Rebecca Dixon & the Children of Smithfield

Live pledge raising funds for Brandworkers

7:45 PM Closing Celebration with Host Dr. Patricia Campos-Medina

Join hundreds of food factory workers and supporters for the Brandworkers Awards Gala. We’ll hold space to grieve the suffering and loss food factory workers have experienced, honor their work sustaining us through the pandemic, and celebrate the dramatic rise of solidarity with food workers fighting for lasting change. Together, we will recognize the outstanding achievements of this year’s Champions of Economic Justice. And we will kick off our end-of-year fundraising drive to support NYC's essential food factory workers building a solidarity union for safe and dignified jobs.

NYC’s food factory workers have done what it takes to survive. And to make it possible for all of us to survive as well. Workers have shown up to work and demanded what they need to stay safe. They’ve fought for their right to stay home and take care. And for every worker who’s grounded their survival in the power of a righteous demand, a growing movement of workers has risen in solidarity beside them. 

In the midst of a pandemic, our community, while resilient, is under pressure. Many have faced loss, illness, and even greater financial stress. 

But the solidarity we’re building now, together as workers, will survive. Failed by the food industry and by government, food workers are demonstrating enormous energy and motivation for change. And we’re gonna need it for what’s to come. We’ll need it to create the work and the world we deserve. We’ll need it to express our full power and to realize the fullness of our dreams. Solidarity is our survival. And that's why we need to bring our communities together on December 8th. 

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Hosted By Dr. Patricia Campos-Medina

Dr. Patricia Campos-Medina is a visionary leader, activist and educator with a rich background in field research, policy, and the development of strategic union organizing, electoral and worker justice community campaigns. Currently, she is the Co-Director of The Worker Institute, ILR-Cornell University where she leads research and education to advance collective bargaining, workers rights, and economic and racial justice. Dr. Campos-Medina is a policy expert on workplace and labor issues, women rights, voting rights, trade and US immigration policy. She serves as the current President of Latinas United for Political Empowerment Inc., is a board member of PODER PAC, an Advisory Committee Member for Eleccion Latina/Ready to Run, and host of Activista Rise Up, a forum for activists to engage everyday people on the work of promoting social and economic justice. Dr. Campos-Medina has been recognized as one of New Jersey’s most influential political leaders by several publications and can be found on Twitter at @Dr.CamposMedina.

Honoring Champions of Economic Justice

Rebecca Dixon, Executive Director, National Employment Law Project

As executive director of the National Employment Law Project (NELP), Rebecca leads NELP’s work to build and contribute to a strong workers’ rights movement that dismantles structural racism, eliminates economic inequality, and builds worker power.  When Brandworkers members from Tom Cat Bakery decided to organize in the wake of an ICE I-9 audit in 2017, NELP provided critical solidarity to support their campaign. NELP’s guidance for employers faced with I-9 audits helped workers envision a concrete path toward protecting their coworkers and raising a higher standard throughout the industry. Rebecca’s motivation for advancing workers’ rights and commitment to economic justice is deeply rooted in her lived experience growing up in rural Mississippi at the intersection of race, class and gender—characteristics that have long defined our ability to participate in our democracy and economy. 

The Children of Smithfield

The Children of Smithfield is a group that was born during COVID-19 out of a common concern for the health and safety of their parents who are employees of Smithfield Foods, a company that operates meatpacking plants. They believe people are their own best advocates and they encourage people to use their own voice, but they are here to advocate for the people who are not ready to use theirs. In a time when workers face life-threatening danger at work, the Children of Smithfield have modeled solidarity by bringing attention to the risks their parents and loved ones face. By connecting their struggle to the struggle of other meatpacking workers and collaborating with movement allies, they have amplified their voices and helped build their power.