Newly elected Member of Parliament for Hamilton Centre, Matthew Green, delivered a rousing address to the almost-1000 delegates at the Ontario Federation of Labour Power of Many Convention on Wednesday morning.
“The monster in Doug Ford is real,” said Green. “But the ghosts of 15 years of liberalism continue to haunt us.”
Green, who was elected with a strong majority on October 21 as the Member of Parliament for Hamilton Centre for the NDP, took to the convention stage minutes before OFL delegates from unions across the province rallied and marched to Queen’s Park to demand an Ontario for all.
“This is not a keynote address, it’s a challenge,” said Green. “What are you going to do? It’s no longer good enough to be an activist. We must be militant.” he declared.
Green was first elected in 2014 to serve as Councillor for Ward 3 (Hamilton Centre) in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He is an accomplished community organizer and served for over a decade to advocate for barrier-free access to healthy living on First Nations territory and with inner-city Hamiltonians.
“I’m an activist. Before I was a city councillor, I was an activist. Before I was an MP, I was an activist,” stressed Green.
For more than a decade, Green advocates for barrier-free access to healthy living on First Nations territory and with inner-city Hamiltonians. As a City Councillor, Matthew’s advocacy made a meaningful difference for residents. He passed the Blue Dot Motion, making Hamilton the first city in Ontario to adopt an environmental bill of rights.
Green reminded delegates that unions are the backbone of communities and we must get boots on the ground to fight back governments who impose cuts on working people.
“Let’s not be lauded into a false sense of security,” said Green. “We cannot be complacent when we know that there are still brothers and sisters on the front lines fighting for equality and fairness.”
As delegates stood to applaud Green’s powerful address, he started a chant in the room: “Je suis militant!”
