[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 145 (Tuesday, October 13, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2132-E2133]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        A TRIBUTE TO SAM MEYERS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. MAJOR R. OWENS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 13, 1998

  Mr. OWENS. Mr. Speaker, on November 8, 1998, Sam Meyers will be 
honored with a Lifetime Struggle and Achievement Award by the citizens 
of Central Brooklyn; however, his career is one with far-reaching 
significance for the national labor movement and for American 
progressive political leadership.
  Sam Meyers, retired President of United Auto Workers Local 259, has 
been honored by many groups numerous times over the last few decades 
and all of the accolades have been deserved. Now eighty years old, he 
can relax with the satisfaction and assurance that he has been to the 
mountain top. Beyond his individual giving there are also the 
contributions of his wife, Carolyn, a retired East New York teacher, 
and his sons, Dan and Matt. Attorney Dan Meyers has devoted much of his 
life to the case seeking justice for the victims of the Attica assault.
  Sam has been a special hero of Central Brooklyn for nearly twenty 
years. The Frank Barbaro campaign to unseat Koch and the victorious 
campaign which elected Mario Cuomo are two of the key events which 
forged the longstanding alliance of Sam Meyers and Major Owens. The 
Barbaro mayoral campaign created the opportunity, for fighters who had 
previously briefly met each other only on speaking platforms, to then 
become permanent partners for progressive politics and empowerment. 
Beyond his immersion in the strategy and tactics of everyday leadership 
for his union, Sam Meyers had a vision and acted with others to fulfill 
the dream of a citywide political coalition.
  In the Summer of 1982, on the same day that major Owens announced the 
formation of the Brooklyn Coalition for Community Empowerment as his 
congressional campaign committee, Sam Meyers delivered a check from the 
United Auto Workers. It was a maximum contribution for the primary and 
the only such Political Action Committee donation received by the new 
and unknown Brooklyn political movement. Owens and his political 
partners--Vann, Green, Norman, Boyland--had nothing concrete that they 
could trade for support. Indeed, Sam Meyers, angered many powerful old 
friends of his when he endorsed the dissidents who were despised by the 
old Kings County machine.
  Sam's adoptions of the Brooklyn empowerment effort was an act of 
political faith with roots in his mother's aspirations for a better 
world. Across boundaries of race, ethnicity and age, without 
hesitation, he applied the same principles that had guided his building 
of a great UAW Local 259. Always present in the mind of Brother Meyers 
was the credo of the street fighter. You have to believe and you have 
to dare.
  Sam Meyers began his lifetime struggle in 1940 as a sheet metal 
worker and a member of UAW, Local 365. In 1943 he joined the Army Air 
Corps. In 1958 he led the successful fight to oust a leadership that 
had become too

[[Page E2133]]

far removed from the membership and was elected President of Local 259. 
In the late 60's he was a co-founder of the New York Labor Committee 
Against the War in Vietnam. In the early 70's Sam helped to bring 
national attention to the impact of plant closings and run-away shops. 
In the late 80's he served as a Jesse Jackson Brooklyn delegate to the 
Democratic National Convention.
  For several decades Local 259 championed the forces of liberation and 
democracy in South Africa, South America, Haiti and throughout the 
globe. Numerous refugee labor leaders found safe haven, support and 
solidarity at Local 259. To continue expanding his legacy Sam Meyers 
now serves on the Commission for the Future of UAW. His career offers 
both inspiration and challenge for future generations.
  The personality of Sam Meyers can be summarized in the same manner 
that author Edith Hamilton described the mentality of the great Greek 
civilization. He maintains a steady gaze on the world as it is with all 
of the harshness and pitfalls, but he never retreats into cynicism and 
despair. He is tough but full of hope. Central Brooklyn is proud to 
salute Sam Meyers for his Lifetime Struggle and Achievement.

                          ____________________