UNITE HERE Local 1 has endorsed Pat Dowell for U.S. Representative in the 1st Congressional District of Illinois.
“Alderman Pat Dowell has established a history of standing up for working people. Her efforts in City Hall have improved the lives of Hospitality workers throughout Chicago,” said Karen Kent, President of UNITE HERE Local 1.
“I am humbled to receive the endorsement from the men and women of UNITE HERE Local 1. These workers are the backbone of the hospitality and travel industry. This endorsement is personal for me. My father was a custodian for PanAm Airways; I saw each day how hard he worked. He worked hard to provide for his family and create a future for me. The men and women, and it is mostly women and people of color, have the same dreams as my father. In Congress, I will protect their rights and help them give life to their dreams for their families,” said Dowell.
UNITE HERE Local 1 represents more than 15,000 hospitality workers in Chicago and Northwest Indiana. Our members work in hotels, O’Hare and Midway airports, restaurants, school cafeterias, stadiums, convention centers like McCormick Place and Navy Pier, and casinos. We are a union of housekeepers, lunchroom attendants, cooks, bartenders, bellmen, servers, and dishwashers. We are predominantly women, immigrants, and people of color.