The Garcia family arrived at Pier A90 already weeping, but determined to honor the life of their beloved husband and father Pablo A. Garcia, the truck driver who was tragically killed at the Port of Long Beach two weeks ago. The now family of four clung to each other as they made their way past a pack of TV and newspaper reporters and camera people and the community altar adorned with candles and flowers. Amidst painful tears, 17-year-old Pablo Garcia Jr. spoke to fellow mourners:

“I am here today speaking to you all because I don’t want my father’s death to be in vain. Our family is broken and forever changed because he is no longer with us. It hurts me to know that he will not be at my high school graduation this June. For the last two weeks I have seen my mother cry in pain and in anger…We don’t want to see another family standing here crying for their loved one next month or even next week! This must stop.”

 

Joining the family’s call for safer working conditions was a diverse group of 100 community and labor leaders and members, including Long Beach Councilmember Tonia Reyes Uranga, Los Angeles Councilmember Janice Hahn, as well as representatives from the Natural Resources Defense Council, Long Beach Community Partners Council, East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, Communities for Clean Ports, Long Beach Greens, Coalition for Clean Air, Long Beach Alliance for Children with Asthma, Mother’s Brigade and Teamsters Joint Council 42.

Throughout the short program both local leaders and Teamster organizers urged the need for a major changes within the broken Long Beach Port system. “Typically what we've seen when there's an accident or a death is that nobody does an investigation, and it's because most of these drivers are being (labeled) as independent contractors, which exempts them from most important workplace rules and regulations," Ricardo Hidalgo, a former truck driver now with the Teamsters, told the Press-Telegram. "The laws being the way they are, there isn't a proper investigation unless someone is working for a company ... working as an employee. That needs to change." Read More.