Today marks the 10th anniversary of my illegal firing from POLITICO for union organizing. Every year, I like to commemorate the day to remember how far I have come since those days. Those days were overwhelming as I struggled to find work ,and people told me that I wouldn’t work for anyone again.
They were right, I would never work for anyone again, I would only work for myself with the support of my readers.
Over the last 10 years, my readers have provided a combined $500,000 to support my work at Payday Report. In that time, we published more than 1,400 stories, were nominated for an Emmy, and traveled all the way from Sáo Bernardo dos Campos to the White House with Brazilian President Lula.
Readers like you freed me from the anxiety and tension of trying to work in a corporate media system that won’t tell the stories of the kind of folks I grew up with in Pittsburgh. We have been able to tell stories that have soul and provide guidance to activists to organize. Just look at this past week when I published stories like “Following ICE Raid, Mill Town Fights Back Against Local Police Cooperation” and “Bernie Rally of 2,300 Boosts Wheeling, West Virginia Youth-Led Movement”.
While the corporate media rejected my style of labor reporting, my readers embraced it. Sometimes, it's been tough to keep Payday afloat, but my readers have always been there to help pay a light bill, meet a healthcare premium payment, or pay a part-time editor.
I can’t tell you how many times I have felt overwhelmed, and then a reader donates $100, and I just keep going. Somehow, we have done that enough times to raise more than $500,000 over a ten-year period. Let’s keep building and telling the stories that other publications don’t.
Thank yinz so much for allowing me the privilege to serve as your labor reporter. It's been an honor of a lifetime to write for yinz.
Melk
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