Tens of thousands of workers across the country walked off the job Monday as part of the “Strike for Black Lives” in support of the nationwide uprising against racism and police brutality. Workers demanded the companies they work for do more to dismantle white supremacy, economic inequality, and to address the public health emergencies facing Black and Brown communities. In Washington, D.C., demonstrators gathered on Capitol Hill to call for the passage of the HEROES Act, a coronavirus relief package approved by the Democrat-controlled House. This is McDonald’s employee Wanda Lavender, who joined the action in Wisconsin.

Wanda Lavender: “Like many Black workers who are struggling, who are stuck in low-paying jobs, I keep going to work through this pandemic. I can’t work my job from home, from the safety of my home, and I can’t afford to take time off. And a few times, I’ve been scared that I had COVID-19 myself. Even though I was feeling sick, coughing my lungs out, my job told me that I had to come in. They said, 'If you take sick leave, you don't have a job to come back to.’”