P.O. Box 14362
St. Paul, MN 55114
OPCMIA Honors the Memory of John Sweeney
On behalf of the OPCMIA’s 56,000 proud members, I want to express my deep condolences to the family and friends of the legendary John Sweeney, a great leader of the greatest movement of our times.
As President of the AFL-CIO, brother Sweeney revitalized the labor movement, spearheading aggressive organizing strategies, expanding and diversifying union leadership and membership, and launching a new wave of activism for social and economic justice. Before then, as President of the Service Employees International Union, he doubled his union’s membership and turned it into a powerhouse.
Brother Sweeney was a good man and a great leader. He put the interests of America’s working families first in everything he did. He was passionate about the pursuit of justice, about workers’ and civil rights, and about upholding the dignity of all working people. And he was a relentless force for solidarity.
While grounded in the great traditions of the labor movement, Brother Sweeney was also a bold innovator, embracing new tactics and strategies, and broadening the appeal of unions to younger generations, women, people of color, immigrants, and all those left behind by our economy and society.
We will miss Brother Sweeney, but his legacy lives on. And we pledge to do everything to continue to bring his life’s work of empowerment to fruition.
Daniel E. Stepano
General President
