Days before the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opens to the public, protesters from the Fair Games Coalition gathered outside the venue. Donning Jedi robes and Jar Jar Binks masks, they carried lightsabers, sounding horns, banging drums, and chanting, “Sí se puede.” Their protest took place across from the new museum in Exposition Park.
The coalition opposes the resignation of museum co-founder Mellody Hobson from the Los Angeles Olympics organizing committee, LA28. Jessica Durrum, director of the Fair Games Coalition, representing the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, emphasized the need for lasting benefits as the Olympics approach. “If the Olympics are coming to town, we want to make sure there are lasting benefits for our communities,” she stated.
The Fair Games Coalition includes over 80 organizations. Its members advocate for improved labor agreements during major events such as the Super Bowl and the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Key unions in the coalition include United Teachers Los Angeles, National Union of Healthcare Workers, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 770, United Farm Workers, among other community groups.
The coalition demands that employers offer union and living wage jobs. They also seek funding for 50,000 housing units for working families, a halt on short-term rental developments, and protections for immigrant workers.
Gladys Avyla, a member of Unite Here Local 11, participated in the protest. Avyla, who has worked for 14 years as a cleaner at Hollywood’s W Hotel, had to relocate to Victorville due to rising rent costs. She expressed concerns about increasing living costs tied to major sporting events, stating, “Rent is very high, and everything is expensive. It’s hard living here. We need a wage increase for the Olympics because everything costs so much.”
Hobson stepped down from her LA28 position, citing her obligations at the Lucas Museum. However, the Fair Games Coalition suspects this was a response to their outreach. Casey Wasserman, leading the 35-person LA28 board, recently drew attention for connections to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. “There’s going to be a lot of money flowing at the top,” mentioned the Rev. Gary Bernard Williams of St. Mark United Methodist Church, “Very little money will be trickling down to the workers who need it the most.”
LA28 and the Lucas Museum have not yet responded to requests for comments.
During the recent World Cup, Unite Here Local 11, responsible for various stadium workers, including dishwashers and bartenders at SoFi Stadium’s food-service operator Legends Global, reached a tentative agreement just before the event. Pastor Bridie Roberts, community organizing director at Unite Here Local 11, acknowledged the coalition’s support during negotiations. “Our members face serious, critical decisions every single day about how to make ends meet and they work with some of the biggest tourism companies in the world that will profit in the billions of these games,” Roberts commented. She added, “We feel that the games have potential to bring real outcomes for working people, but only if we fight for them.”
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