DALLAS—On Saturday, Aug. 17, in the Dallas Fine Arts District, the fired union dancers of the Dallas Black Dance Theatre held a picket line and a rally to protest the firing of the entire group of dancers at the company because they unanimously voted to form a union with the American Guild of Musical Artists.
The action was held while the Dallas Black Dance Theatre was holding auditions to replace the dancers with scab dancers—anti-union workers willing to cross picket lines.
On May 29, the dancers at the Dallas Black Dance Theatre voted unanimously to form a union. Immediately after they did, management started to retaliate, said Griff Braun of the American Guild of Musical Artists.
The dancers organized “because they wanted to have a voice in their working lives for themselves and also every artist that follows them. They did it because they love this company, and love the legacy of this company. They wanted to make sure DBDT is a place that nurtures artists and is a safe place to work.
“The dancers, being a union, decided to speak out publicly in a concerted way, and let the world know they were experiencing union-busting. When they did that, they were all fired, the entire company was fired.
“Right now, inside that building, they are holding an audition to replace these dancers. They can’t be replaced! We are here to let them know, that what they did is wrong and they need to bring their artists back, they need to stop the union-busting, and they need to sit down and bargain and make this place what it’s supposed to be, what it purports to be.”
Many speakers addressed the rally, including the fired dancers; representatives from the SAG-AFTRA union; a member of the American Federation of Teachers, the leader of the Young Active Labor Leaders; Lou Luckhardt, Secretary-Treasurer of the Dallas AFL-CIO Central Labor Council; State Rep. John Bryant; Dallas City Councilman Paul Ridley; and other members of the American Guild of Musical Artists.
Fired dancer Nile Ruff said she respected the DBDT for “bringing a safe space to Black dancers, and people of color, bringing a voice to people that are not always heard. We are the artwork that is on that stage!”
She said, “Dallas Black, you need us!”
The consistent theme was that the dancers are the ones who produce the art, who do the work. They are the heart and soul of the Dallas Black Dance Theatre, and they should be brought back, respected, and bargained with.
“We are fighting not just for the artists in Texas but for artists all around the world who just want to protect their rights to have a voice in their workplace and to advocate for better working conditions!” said Derick McKoy, Jr., one of the fired dancers.
At the rally, around 200 people joined the dancers on their picket line. Among the chants that management and scabs inside the building would have heard echoing from the street: “Dallas Black! Bring them back!” “Firing Dancers? Not the answer!” “What’s disgusting? Union-busting!” “What’s our mission? No audition!” “Union Strong! All day long!”
As a march got underway after the rally, people started dancing to the beat of a drum—line dancing, the electric slide, and more. The fired dancers joyously started doing impromptu dance solos.
At its meeting, the Dallas AFL-CIO Central Labor Council expressed its total support for the DBDT dancers, and the Young Active Labor Leaders (YALL) helped lead the solidarity effort to support the picket line and rally. Six of the fired dancers and their union organizer, Griff Braun attended the council meeting and brought news of their struggle.
“We organized for the people who came before us and those who will come after us,” Elijah Lancaster told the labor representatives.
Sierra Jones reminded the audience that “it is the artists that make the company.”
“It is devastating and disheartening,” said dancer Gillian Clifford, “but I wouldn’t change a thing.”
Nile Ruff, another of those who unionized, said, “We just want respect for the efforts that we make on a daily basis. What management doesn’t seem to realize is that people really care about us, and our voices matter.”
State Sen. Nathan Johnson sent in a message to the rally: “The arts are not only vital to our community but essential to our shared humanity. As a member of ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors & Music Publishers), I firmly believe that all artists deserve fair treatment, respect, and the fundamental right to organize for better working conditions.”
Rev. Dr. Frederick D. Haynes, III, Sr. Pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church, also sent solidarity greetings: “As a father of a Dallas Black Dance alum, and as one who has always enjoyed the rich artistic talents and gift that the institution is to our community and city, I am profoundly disturbed by recent events that reflect a horrible injustice.
“The fine arts have always been a source of inspiration in the struggle for Black freedom and for liberation and justice for all. It is upsetting to think that an institution that has benefitted and participated in the struggle for freedom is now using tools of oppression on its own.
“To remix Dr. King, injustice to fired Dallas Black Dancers anywhere is a threat to justice for workers everywhere!”
Dancers at the rally shared a GoFundMe to help them overcome job loss.
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