Teresa Canning Interview

RACHEL BERNSTEIN: So, it's Rachel Bernstein, and I'm with Teresa, and it's November 21st. We're at the retirees convention in Las Vegas. Thank you so much, Teresa --

TERESA CANNING: Thank you for having me.

BERNSTEIN: -- for doing this. So, I know we're here to talk about your work in Ohio.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: But I want to get a little background.

CANNING: OK.

BERNSTEIN: So if we can start with where you were born and approximately when, if you're willing to tell me.

CANNING: Sure.

BERNSTEIN: If your parents, you know, if you were a union baby or anything that's relevant in that regard.

CANNING: Sure. I was born in Concord, North Carolina, on October 28th, 1965. My parents were very, very young, um, so they divorced when I was young. Um, my mom moved to Maryland. After we lived in North Carolina, we lived in West Virginia, we lived in Virginia, and we moved to Maryland, and she married my stepfather, 00:01:00who is a firefighter - a DC firefighter. Uh, retired now. He was union, but we didn't have a whole lot of education regarding the union growing up.

BERNSTEIN: So you most-- you grew up a lot of places, but ended up in Maryland.

CANNING: I was probably in second grade, and we stayed in Maryland.

BERNSTEIN: And so were there -- did you know what you wanted to be when you -- (laughter) when you were growing up, what did you think about your future?

CANNING: Not when I -- I really didn't -- I think about that now, and I don't really have a specific job that I can remember really thinking that I really wanted to do.

BERNSTEIN: Were there --

CANNING: I mean --

BERNSTEIN: -- values in your family that somehow you thought you were going to carry on?

CANNING: I -- again, my -- my mother had me when she was 15, so it's -- it's a little bit different than, you know, if --

BERNSTEIN: Did she want to be sure you didn't have a baby when you were 15?

CANNING: I think that -- yes. Sure. I think she did. Um, I think they pushed education, but they didn't quite understand it, looking back now, um, so it 00:02:00wasn't -- college wasn't a big issue in our house. It wasn't something that we ever expected that we would do, so I didn't go to college until later in life.

BERNSTEIN: Neither of your parents went to college --

CANNING: No.

BERNSTEIN: -- and so that, therefore (overlapping dialogue; inaudible)

CANNING: It wasn't something that was instilled in us. I mean, education was importantly, obviously, and they did instill that in us, but -- but going to college and higher education and things like that were not something that was really important to me growing up.

BERNSTEIN: Mm. So you went to high school. Were you an activist in high school?

CANNING: No. Not at all.

BERNSTEIN: Did you have especially -- did you have a special -- were you into music or gymnastics or...?

CANNING: I did sports at school.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: We didn't -- we weren't really -- we didn't have a lot of money, so we didn't participate in extracurricular activities or anything like that, but I did play sports in school. Um, I um, I excelled in, like, typing classes 00:03:00and things like that. (laughter) Um --

BERNSTEIN: Did you work?

CANNING: I did. I started working when I was -- I babysat when I was younger, and then I cleaned office buildings after school when I was, I think, probably about 14, and then when I was a senior in high school, I did the work study program where I went to school half day and then I worked for a law firm downtown -- in DC. So --

BERNSTEIN: Oh. When you cleaned office buildings, did you have any connection with the, um, Justice for Janitors or any of the organizing drives? The SEIU?

CANNING: Nothing, no. It was a -- it was a single proprietor who hired high school kids to come and clean the office buildings with him at night.

BERNSTEIN: Huh.

CANNING: Pay minimum wage. (laughter) I had no idea -- I never -- unions was just not something we ever had any information about.

BERNSTEIN: Never heard of.

CANNING: No.

BERNSTEIN: Isn't that interesting?

CANNING: And it's funny because it wasn't until I was older and I would ride by the building, the headquarters, and see the big silver building, and I used to always think, "What is in there?" And then I finally had the opportunity to apply, and I found out what was there. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: (laughter)

CANNING: So it was nothing until -- it was later in life that I even knew about unions.

BERNSTEIN: Right. That's so interesting.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: So you worked at a law office.

CANNING: During high school.

BERNSTEIN: During high school.

CANNING: And then when I graduated, um, I continued working for the same law firm. Um, I, uh, ended up having a child at 19, so kind of repeated my mom's pattern.

BERNSTEIN: That's a big difference, 15 and 19.

CANNING: Yeah, oh, definitely. And I had graduated from high school. I was actually out on my own, had a full-time job, and I s-- I worked in law firms until I got the job at the union.

BERNSTEIN: Doing sort of administrative work?

CANNING: Administrative work.

BERNSTEIN: Mm.

CANNING: Foreclosure, bankruptcy, collection-type law. And one of the girls that I worked with at the -- the law firm that I worked at before I came to the union, her husband worked for the IEM, and she ended up getting a job there, and she was saying how great it was, so all the girls at the law firm were like, 00:05:00"Well, we're going to apply," so we did, and I just happened to get a call one day, and that was my first introduction to the union, when I went for my interview.

BERNSTEIN: And so, not this union, but any union, you had really --

CANNING: Any union.

BERNSTEIN: -- not had --

CANNING: Yeah, again, it wasn't --

BERNSTEIN: Did you [make it?] -- I mean, did you read the papers? They're so negative, or are you just really not in your world?

CANNING: It wasn't in my world, to be honest with you.

BERNSTEIN: Yeah.

CANNING: And it's weird when I think back now, because I keep asking my dad questions, and I was like, "You never said anything to us about the union when we were growing up." And it's --

BERNSTEIN: Right. He must have been somehow involved in a firefighter's organization.

CANNING: He belonged, but he -- he did not participate. He was not active.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: Um, and I don't, to this day, even know if it's something that he understands that he should appreciate.

BERNSTEIN: It's just there in the background.

CANNING: It's -- it would -- yeah.

BERNSTEIN: Kind of.

CANNING: Yeah.

BERNSTEIN: So you came, you applied for the job because you knew somebody who already worked there who liked it.

CANNING: Mm-hmm.

BERNSTEIN: And, uh, so what was your first job?

CANNING: I started as a clerk typist, and within, I think, three months, I had applied for an administrative staff secretary job, and I -- I ended up getting that, and I worked with that about three years, and then I was promoted to the office assistant for Steve Sleigh, who is the head of the pension fund now. But he was head of strategic resources at the time, and I was his office assistant --

BERNSTEIN: Oh, you're kidding!

CANNING: Yeah. And then I went back to college. Well, I started college, and --

BERNSTEIN: Now, what made you want to do that?

CANNING: Because I started to see how important education really is, and I wanted my kids to see. I wanted to set an example for my boys. So, it's never too late.

BERNSTEIN: Did your co-- did the people in -- at your work encourage you?

CANNING: Steve Sleigh was wonderful. He was very encouraging, very encouraging. So he was a big mentor to me when it comes to education.

BERNSTEIN: So you managed to go to college and work?

CANNING: I went to community college part-time at night. Um, it took me -- oh, it seemed like forever to get my associate's degree, and then I transferred to 00:07:00an online school when I -- I actually ended up getting promoted in the meantime to a research analyst. So, and that's when I joined the machinist's union. I was Local 2 when I had my -- my secretarial positions, so it was OP --

BERNSTEIN: And Local 2 was a staff union?

CANNING: That's OPEIU, and then, um, I was promoted to the staff position, so I joined the machinist's union in 2006.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, nice.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: So when -- so when you first joined the OPEIU --

CANNING: Mm-hmm.

BERNSTEIN: What did you, uh --

CANNING: I think being at headquarters, honestly, is a little bit different. I don't really even think I began to quite understand how effective this union is until I started going down to the Winpisinger Center and meeting members. It's different when you work at headquarters, and everybody comes in, and they just kind of do their job every day, but when you go and meet the members, and you see how passionate they are, I personally, and I -- I don't -- you don't 00:08:00see a lot of that passion on the, you know, day-to-day at headquarters.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: But when you go to the Winpisinger Center and you meet the members, and you see the people down there who -- to -- teach them and instruct them, oh, it's amazing. And that's -- that was a turning point for me, as well.

BERNSTEIN: That's great.

CANNING: So the more -- and the more I s-- I learn, the more grateful I am.

BERNSTEIN: So you got promoted to be an analyst before you had done very much college? So you really learned --

CANNING: Well, I had my associate's degree.

BERNSTEIN: -- learned on the job?

CANNING: I did, I learned on the job, um, and then I continued on and got my bachelor's degree, so.

BERNSTEIN: And -- and what are you now?

CANNING: I'm a research associate. Kind of the same job, but I really enjoy it.

BERNSTEIN: And so tell me something about how the job -- what you do on the job.

CANNING: Most of what I do deals with our surveys.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: I develop and analyze our surveys, and we do bargaining surveys, and 00:09:00organizing surveys, member satisfaction surveys. I also work on some of our aerospace and service contract organizing requests.

BERNSTEIN: So what does -- what does that mean, an organizing request?

CANNING: If a representative from the field send us information, if they may have an organizing target, or they want us to see if we can find some targets for them, I will go through the government databases and see if I can find work that's classified as service contract, um, and put a list together for them in their area. Kind of tell 'em what kind of work they do, how many people are at the location.

BERNSTEIN: Right, where they are.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Interesting.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Very interesting.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: And have you -- since you're a member, are you -- how does -- how does that -- what part does that play in your life?

CANNING: It --

BERNSTEIN: You said you joined in 2006. (laughter)

CANNING: Yes. Yes.

BERNSTEIN: You have this huge smile on your face.

CANNING: (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: I just have to say, for the record. (laughter)

CANNING: Yes, and it did. It made me so proud, so proud. Um --

BERNSTEIN: And so -- what -- I mean, that meant you could go to -- what -- what -- what impact did it have? You know, so did you go to meetings, or --

CANNING: I was able to go to meetings. I was able to go to staff meetings, I was --

BERNSTEIN: -- wear t-shirts, that sort of thing?

CANNING: -- which we all -- I mean, headquarters were -- I don't want to give the wrong impression that we -- as -- as secretarial staff, we were proud, and they are today. They wear the shirts. They wear the jackets. They participate in activities. Um, I think it's just something about knowing that you're paying dues to the machinist's union, finally, that you're making --

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: -- you know, you're making a difference.

BERNSTEIN: You're part of --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- part of it, yeah.

CANNING: Yes. More inclusive in -- in a different kind of way.

BERNSTEIN: And how did, um, how did -- how did you balance your family and your work life? I guess it's not nearly as hard for you as it is for people who are out on the road organizing.

CANNING: No, it was -- I have a very supportive husband, my kids were proud of me, um, so I -- it was difficult time-wise to juggle your time, but I enjoyed going to school, I enjoy working, so I didn't find it extremely difficult or --

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: -- and if -- if I knew things were going to be really bad for a certain semester, I would just take that semester off and go back the next semester.

BERNSTEIN: Which makes a lot of sense.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm. So --

CANNING: And I had a job I loved, so I didn't feel rushed to do it either.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: It took me forever, (laughter) but --(laughter) but I did it.

BERNSTEIN: You balance it out, yeah, so that's amazing. So, uh, so when did you first get interested in politics?

CANNING: I don't know -- again, I think it was probably when I was starting to be assigned to go out and support labor-friendly candidates and issues.

BERNSTEIN: Did you vote? When did you first vote?

CANNING: I think I --

BERNSTEIN: Do you think your parents voted?

CANNING: I do. I do. Don't know if they'd vote in the same way I would. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: Do you remember who they voted for?

CANNING: No. Well, I could -- they wouldn't --

BERNSTEIN: You could guess, but they wouldn't tell you?

CANNING: I know -- I'm pretty sure that I -- no, I think because they know how I would -- they know how I vote.

BERNSTEIN: Uh-huh.

CANNING: So I don't think that's an area that they would want to (laughter) --

BERNSTEIN: Bring up.

CANNING: Yes. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: So you were aware of their modest engagement when you were growing up, and then when you first --

CANNING: Yes, I -- yeah.

BERNSTEIN: How did you -- how did you come to be different, I mean, you know?

CANNING: I've always been different, which is pr-- I've always been kind of like the one -- well, I've always been different -- I've always thought differently than them. I -- I can say that.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: Not that there -- I think there's a right or wrong way to think. I think I've just always thought differently than them. They have different values than I have. And --

BERNSTEIN: And how do you think that happened?

CANNING: I don't know. I always think -- I always ask myself that, because they're -- they're very outspoken on a lot of issues, and I didn't -- even from a young age, I remember not quite thinking the same way, and you don't really say a whole lot when you're younger, (laughter) but, um, as I grew 00:13:00older, I think I just became more independent from them, and knew that it was OK, after a while, not to think the same way --

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: -- that they thought, or they think.

BERNSTEIN: And so did you -- before you got assigned, you said you voted, but did you follow issues and candidates?

CANNING: I think I, probably for a while, just voted the way I thought they voted, because it's your parents and you think they know everything for a while --

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: -- and -- and -- (sigh) I just -- I don't know, to be honest with you. I don't know where the distinction came in. I don't remember a time, but I just --

BERNSTEIN: There was -- you don't remember having --

CANNING: But really getting --

BERNSTEIN: -- friends or mentors or people who sort of sparked a interest?

CANNING: Not in politics, no.

BERNSTEIN: OK.

CANNING: It wasn't until the machinist's union. I mean, it's changed my life completely. It has.

BERNSTEIN: So tell -- so tell me how it happened. It didn't happen early. It happened -- you came on staff.

CANNING: Yeah, and you start hearing -- you're exposed to more. You hear more points of view than in your own little world. So you start hearing other things, and you kind of think, "Well, gee, I've kind of thought that way for a long time, and there's actually other people who think this way." (laughter) And then you want to hear more, and it makes you want to become involved.

BERNSTEIN: Well, that's terrific. So your first assignment, it had to do with a campaign or an issue, or a rally?

CANNING: My first -- my first assignment, I don't remember the year. Um, it started out just local, on weekends, if you can volunteer some time to go out and knock on doors, and then we were -- we would phone bank, and it was nice to have an opportunity to have people ask you questions, and maybe you could answer something -- or just, if nothing else, encourage them to vote.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: And then you had some people who weren't the nicest people about it, but then there were others who were so thankful, or if you had the opportunity to ask somebody if they needed a ride to the polls, just anything to help. And 00:15:00then I think the biggest -- even with this last election was just amazing.

BERNSTEIN: So, before we get to 2012 --

CANNING: OK.

BERNSTEIN: -- in 2008, do you remember that election?

CANNING: I s-- 2008, I stayed local. Two thousand and ten was Cincinnati, I think, and then 2012 we did the three areas. So 2008 was -- I would do our local neighborhoods.

BERNSTEIN: So did you -- were you a Hillary supporter before Obama got the nomination?

CANNING: Yes. (laughter) I was.

BERNSTEIN: I think almost everybody in this building, I think, so --

CANNING: I think so. We endorsed her. We (laughter) so, yes, I was.

BERNSTEIN: And then did you transfer your loyalties -- do you -- do you remember --

CANNING: I did. I did.

BERNSTEIN: -- that experience?

CANNING: I did.

BERNSTEIN: And so did you -- were you deeply engaged -- were you as excited 00:16:00about that election as a lot of people were in 2008?

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Yeah.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: And so you did local --

CANNING: I did, um, our local neighborhoods, um, and I did a lot of phone banking. I think that's all we did during that time.

BERNSTEIN: Well, that's a lot.

CANNING: Yes, because I was in school then, and working full-time, and (laughter) --

BERNSTEIN: That's a lot.

CANNING: We didn't -- I didn't travel a lot then.

BERNSTEIN: You were rather adding it on, yeah, yeah, yeah.

CANNING: Um, yes.

BERNSTEIN: And then you said in 2010...?

CANNING: Two thousand and ten we did local elections in Cincinnati, and that was my first assignment in another state. Um, and that was exciting. We were doing, um, local candidates then, and --

BERNSTEIN: And how -- so how many people did you go with?

CANNING: I went with, um --

BERNSTEIN: And was this retirees?

CANNING: No, no. This was, um -- this was staff members working with other staff members. We just started -- Charlie just started the retiree program in 2012 00:17:00with, you know, pairing staff members with retirees, as far as I know.

BERNSTEIN: OK.

CANNING: Um, so it was just -- in 2010, it was some of my work colleagues. We went to Cincinnati, and we worked with the local AFL-CIO. We would go get our lists and just go around neighborhoods in Cincinnati, and we met with a, um, one of our GLRs from the eastern territory, and it was so wonderful because he would take us around to some of our work sites, so we got to actually speak with our members at their work places --

BERNSTEIN: That's pretty --

CANNING: -- and talk to them, and that was wonderful.

BERNSTEIN: Yeah.

CANNING: That was very nice.

BERNSTEIN: Has a lot of benefits on the sides.

CANNING: Yes, it was -- it -- just inspiring to -- to see them at work and have an opportunity to talk to them.

BERNSTEIN: Right. That's great.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: And so how long were you there?

CANNING: Cincinnati, I think we were there -- actually, I was only there for two or three weeks because of my work schedule. Um, my colleagues stayed out --

BERNSTEIN: And how did you manage that -- I mean, your kids must -- how old -- you left your kids for two or three weeks, and --

CANNING: Mm-hmm.

BERNSTEIN: -- your husband took care of them?

CANNING: My husband takes care -- and they were -- they were a little older. They were not tiny. He's committed, but he's not -- I would never say he's more of an activist. He -- he'll vote, he'll --

BERNSTEIN: Well, you have to be pretty committed to take care of the kids for three weeks while your wife goes on the road.

CANNING: Oh, yes, yes. He is --

BERNSTEIN: I mean, that's -- that's huge.

CANNING: He's wonderful.

BERNSTEIN: That's huge.

CANNING: He's wonderful, and even when I travel now, I mean he'll clean the house, and he'll cook, and he'll do laundry, so it's -- he's so helpful. So helpful.

BERNSTEIN: And sup-- obviously --

CANNING: Very supportive, yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- supporting --

CANNING: He's union as well. He's IBEW member.

BERNSTEIN: Uh-huh.

CANNING: So he understands.

BERNSTEIN: How did you all meet?

CANNING: We met through our kids. This is my second marriage, both of our second marriages, and we met through our children.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, nice.

CANNING: They played sports together.

BERNSTEIN: That's very cool.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: So -- so tell me what you know about the origins of the retiree -- whatever it's called, pairing retirees and staff members to go out on the road. (laughter)

CANNING: Well, and --

BERNSTEIN: I'm sure it has a name, and I should know it.

CANNING: Not really. We need to give it a name. (laughter) And, um, it was probably late September, early October 2012, my director, um, Neil Gladstein, came to my colleagues, Don Pittman, Gwen Camp, and I, and asked if we would be willing to participate in a different type of election activity instead of staff members working with staff members, and he said, "You're going to work with retirees," and we were like, "Well, what are we going to do?" He said, "I don't know. This is all I know." (laughter) I said, "Well, OK." (laughter) So we weren't really sure what to expect.

BERNSTEIN: Right. Did you Charlie very well at that point, or --

CANNING: I knew Charlie, yeah, I knew Charlie, um, but we didn't have an opportunity to talk to him that day or anything.

BERNSTEIN: Right.

CANNING: It was just our director coming to us and asking us that, and going back to his office, so (laughter) I don't think he had a whole lot of information, um, other than we were going to drive them.

BERNSTEIN: Uh-huh.

CANNING: So we ended up going to Ohio, and we met, um, at that time, all of the retirees hadn't come in. Um, our first group was Andrea Gorman, Tom Lux, um, Janet -- and Janet Clark. I think those were the first three, and then Susan -- and Susan Davis and Diane Flemming came in, and Sam Rodriguez, and then Tony Brooks-Floyd came in. I don't think I'm leaving anybody out. I hope I'm not. (laughter) Um, and then we all worked in Akron together for probably the first week or so, and then they divided us up, and Don and Gwen took Janet, Tony, and Tom, and I moved to Toledo with Susan, Diane, Sam, and Andrea so we could cover more area.

BERNSTEIN: OK.

CANNING: Um, and then we hit the ground running. As soon as we got there, we 00:21:00went to the -- we worked out of a teamster's hall in Toledo. Um, we doorknocked during the day, we phonebanked, we stuffed envelopes, we put signs together. Um -- oh, when we were Akron, we participated in a -- it was a mock bake sale protest. That was a lot of fun.

BERNSTEIN: Tell me what a mock bake sale protest is.

CANNING: Charlie --

BERNSTEIN: It sounds interesting.

CANNING: It was very -- it was great. (laughter) Charlie and the retirees came up with the idea of holding a protest. We were supporting a local candidate. Her name was Betty Sutton. She was a congresswoman running for reelection against, um -- oh, what was his name? Renacci. Jim Renacci?

BERNSTEIN: I'm not sure.

CANNING: Um, and he had just voted for Paul Ryan's budget --

BERNSTEIN: Oy.

CANNING: -- to restructure Medicare and to vouchers. So Charlie came up with the idea of setting up like a mock bake sale out of Jim Renacci's office, and we 00:22:00would protest, so (laughter) Janet made signs all night. It was great. Um, she made these wonderful signs, and we parked at a mall across the street, and we all went over, and we set up a table, and Charlie bought all kinds of cookies and baked goods, and put it on this table, and we were just going to try to call attention to the signs we were holding.

BERNSTEIN: So what did the signs say?

CANNING: Oh, gosh. It was, um -- they had some Alliance for Retired Americans, you know, trying to call attention to the issue --

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: -- and Vote for Sutton, Renacci is against Medicare, it was -- I can't remember it. I've got pictures, actually, on my computer, if you want to see them. Um --

BERNSTEIN: Oh, I absolutely do. I want you to send them to archives to go with the interview.

CANNING: Oh, definitely, yes!

BERNSTEIN: Yes, yes. That would be great.

CANNING: Yes. So we set all that stuff up, we had the signs, and there was kind of like a little highway between the mall and where we were protesting, so were just, ya know -- trying to call attention, and yelling, and people were honking in support, so it was really nice. We were talking to people on the sidewalk as they came by, trying to call attention, and I don't know if he was ever in the 00:23:00office. I think --

BERNSTEIN: I was going to say, did he ever come by? Did he show his face?

CANNING: No, not that we saw him. I don't know if members of his staff -- because there were people coming in and out of the building. Um, but the funniest part of that day was we happened to look over across the street at one point, (laughter) and mall security was sitting there watching us. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: Did it -- did it -- did it get any press or attention?

CANNING: I don't --

BERNSTEIN: Beyond the people who came by?

CANNING: I don't think so.

BERNSTEIN: Not that you found, yeah.

CANNING: Yeah.

BERNSTEIN: What a great idea, a mock bake sale protest.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: OK. And that was in --

CANNING: That was in Canton, Ohio, but that's when we were all -- we were working out of Akron at the time --

BERNSTEIN: Right.

CANNING: -- and we drove over the Canton --

BERNSTEIN: OK.

CANNING: -- in front of his office, so I'll definitely send you those pictures.

BERNSTEIN: That's a good one. And then you go down to, um --

CANNING: Toledo.

BERNSTEIN: Toledo.

CANNING: Mm-hmm.

BERNSTEIN: And knock on doors, and --

CANNING: We knocked on doors, we phonebanked, um, it was --

BERNSTEIN: And how many hours a day do you think people were working?

CANNING: Oh my goodness, they were unstoppable. They would have worked 12 hours a day if (laughter) -- we would start, I think, doorknocking around 9:00 in the morning, and we would go 'til about 5:00 or 6:00. Um, we would stop for lunch, you know, pick up the -- change packets and things like that. Um, and then sometimes we would phonebank in the evenings, or if they didn't want to doorknock one day, they had phone banks set up at the -- the local, they could just sit and phonebank if that's what they chose to do.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: Um, we had tables full of literature we could help them put together. So it was kind of always something for someone to do, if they didn't want to do something one day --

BERNSTEIN: If they needed a break.

CANNING: -- or wanted to kind of switch things up, yes. And the -- the local was just -- they were so impressed with the retirees. They couldn't talk enough about them. They asked if we could have them back next time because they just worked so hard. And it was even nice because the head of our -- our campaign in Ohio -- in Toledo was, um, a woman by the name of Kate Jacob, and she was a young worker from the AFL-CIO. So for somebody who was young to be working this 00:25:00whole campaign, and most of her staff was young --

BERNSTEIN: Uh-huh.

CANNING: -- and we were taking direction from them, and everybody was working so well together, uh, it was wonderful. She was their campaign coordinator for --

BERNSTEIN: Right.

CANNING: -- Toledo, so.

BERNSTEIN: She was the Democratic campaign --

CANNING: For the AFL-CIO.

BERNSTEIN: The AFL --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- campaign coordinator. Got it.

CANNING: Yes. Wonderful -- everybody took so well to her, and she did so well with everybody, so that was wonderful to see, too --

BERNSTEIN: That's very nice.

CANNING: -- for somebody so young to handle such a big --

BERNSTEIN: And diverse group. Yeah.

CANNING: Yes, yes.

BERNSTEIN: And what about the process of education? When people volunteer for campaigns, they often have not a serious grasp of all the issues, and especially when you're going to another state with people you don't know --

CANNING: That was difficult. That was difficult.

BERNSTEIN: -- and moving around from one to the other.

CANNING: We had scripts --

BERNSTEIN: Tell me about how that worked.

CANNING: We had scripts that we could follow, and a lot of us would do research on our own. I would, at night, kind of Google things and see what I could find. Um, but a lot of it was scripts that they would give us, and we would -- and a 00:26:00lot of times, there were questions we couldn't answer, but we would get that answer, and we would take it back to anybody who asked.

BERNSTEIN: And you would get the answer from headquarters staff.

CANNING: The A-- the AFL-CIO. We would go back and we would ask, and we would take that information back.

BERNSTEIN: Yeah. That's good.

CANNING: Yes. So it is. It's not easy to go from place to place and try to learn about, especially local candidates. It's -- it's --

BERNSTEIN: Right.

CANNING: -- difficult, but I think when -- they were so committed. They -- and it was -- for me, I thought it was interesting. They had a meeting with, um, I think her name was Bentley Davis. She was from the Ohio Alliance for Retired Americans, and they -- she was really wonderful, because she would come and meet with them. A lot of times -- I wouldn't -- I'm not sure if it was once a week, but we -- she was a constant presence while we were there, and she would give them information, and you could see them take that information back and share it with other retirees. We phonebanked only retirees one day, and you -- 00:27:00just from me listening on one side of the phone, you could hear them explaining issues to other retirees, and you could tell that they were getting through, and that they were really making a difference, because they were speaking --

BERNSTEIN: They were on the same page.

CANNING: -- retiree to retiree --

BERNSTEIN: Yeah.

CANNING: -- and it was so wonderful to see that.

BERNSTEIN: And especially, yeah, in this election, the issues are all about retirees.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Or, you know, things that affect retirees.

CANNING: Sure.

BERNSTEIN: Everything.

CANNING: And I learned so much from them.

BERNSTEIN: Yeah.

CANNING: I -- I really did.

BERNSTEIN: That sounds like a great experience.

CANNING: Yeah, it was. It was life-changing for me. I hope they ask me back. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: That's wonderful. Is there a funny story from then that you want to tell me?

CANNING: Oh my goodness. There's so many stories. Probably the f-- the one day that I -- I'll never forget was… and-- I was paired, most days, with Andrea Gorman. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: So you didn't have to say a thing. (laughter)

CANNING: Well, I called her "crazy legs Gorman," because she was -- I didn't have the car stopped before she was out of the car. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: I love her.

CANNING: I do too. (laughter) She's one of my favorite people. Um, and we would try to work opposite sides of the street, and -- but we'd always try to keep each other within site, obviously, for safety reasons, but we were in a neighborhood one day that -- it was -- it was more of an inner city—type neighborhood. We were actually volunteering that day, doing worker's voice instead of union members, so it was just kind of to the pub-- we were just visiting the public. So Andrea was on one side of the street, and I was on the other side of the street, and for some reason, she ended up way ahead of me, and I couldn't -- I couldn't see her, and I got a little nervous, and about a block ahead, I saw this big group of guys hanging out in the middle of the street, so I started hearing a buncha commotion, and I -- really, it scared me, so I started walking up towards them, and out of the middle of this circle of 00:29:00big huge guys, I hear, "Do you know about issue two?" which she wasn't leaving Ohio until everybody knew about this issue two. It was a redistricting issue. (laughter) She's in the middle of this group of guys, and she's asking them about issue two, and she's handing out literature, and she's talking to them about the election, and she had them so engaged. (laughter) And it was -- it was funny after I saw (laughter) but it scared me to death for a minute. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: Oh, that's really good.

CANNING: Oh, she's something. She is something. And then Sam Rodriguez, he was another one. I had him in my car a lot, and he wouldn't just go to the house that's on our list. If they weren't home, he would knock on a neighbor's door. He was going to talk to somebody before he left anywhere. (laughter) He is very, very persistent. He's so passionate. Um, but he decided while we there that he was going to teach me to drive like a New Yorker.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, dear.

CANNING: Yes. (laughter) So we had an incident one day where he finally succeeded, so I went home with a busted mirror on my car because Sam succeeded in me driving like a New Yorker. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: I hope he paid for it.

CANNING: No, it was my fault because I listened to him. (laughter) Oh, but they were all so inspiring. It's -- Susan and Diane were just two of the most wonderful women I have ever met. They are role models for any woman. Just so inspiring.

BERNSTEIN: Mm.

CANNING: They all -- I mean -- and I always just keep thinking about the issues that they had going on in their lives at that time, and --

BERNSTEIN: During the campaign, you mean?

CANNING: Mm-hmm. Some of them had personal issues, some of them had family issues, I know one of 'em had a medical issue going on, and they left their homes, they left their families.

MALE: Oh. Uh-oh.

BERNSTEIN: Uh-oh.

MALE: They're doing an interview.

BERNSTEIN: Hello. Do you need -- do you need this space?

MALE: We'll come back.

CANNING: You're sure?

MALE: How long you're going to be?

BERNSTEIN: Oh, another half hour?

MALE: (sigh)

BERNSTEIN: What time is it?

CANNING: We can move.

MALE: Well, we've gotta set up -- he's breaking at nine o'clock, and the committees are going to come up here. This is a caucus room.

CANNING: OK.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, we thought they were coming at 10:30.

MALE: No, we thought they were coming at 10:00, but Charlie's breaking at 9:30.

CANNING: OK.

BERNSTEIN: They've changed things up on us. You know what, we'll move. Give us, like, five minutes and we'll move. OK. Um, maybe we should just go find a place, all right?

CANNING: Yeah, that's fine.

BERNSTEIN: OK. We're back. Um, so we're still in Ohio, and you're still telling me funny stories. Is there another one?

CANNING: Um -- gosh. Oh, we did go, um -- we met one night, um, right -- I think it was the weekend before the election, Charlie and Kathy had made reservations at a -- at a restaurant between Toledo and Sandusky, because that's where the groups were stationed at the time, so we all came back together and, um, we met 00:32:00for dinner, and we just kind of caught up and chatted, and um, talked about the election, and they had a band that came on, and then the music started, and those retirees danced the night away, and that was another night I'll never forget, because they were just -- just amazing. They were so much fun. We had such a nice time that night. Um, it was great bonding experience.

BERNSTEIN: Yeah.

CANNING: Something the, you know, outside of the election, so, um, that was really nice, too.

BERNSTEIN: That's wonderful.

CANNING: Yes, yes.

BERNSTEIN: Do you remember a particular encounter or conversation when you're knocking on a door, and you get somebody who's either happy to see you or not?

CANNING: It was funny to me, um, when we would go into the inner city areas, um, how grateful people were to have us there. And that -- I really took that away from that experience. We would go to some of the outer cities, and people, you 00:33:00know, most of the people were not so nice, because it was more of a Republican area, so we were met with a little more discourse, I guess. Um, but when we would go to the inner cities, oh, the people were just so -- they would invite us in to talk. They would --

BERNSTEIN: And is that because they agreed with you?

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Or is it also because nobody ever came there and knocked on their door, even though they were in Ohio?

CANNING: There were some -- a lot -- well, I have to say, though, you -- we were -- a lot of us were on top of each other that -- this past election in Ohio. In most of the neighborhoods we went to, in -- a lot of them were other groups supporting Democratic issues, but we were kind of on top of each other some times.

BERNSTEIN: And there was no way to coordinate --

CANNING: No.

BERNSTEIN: -- because of the separation.

CANNING: A lot of people would have appreciated that. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: A lot of the people opened their doors.

CANNING: But it -- another thing that you hear so much, you know, people stereotype people who live in the inner city, and I can't count the number of people whose doors I would go to who would -- I would tell them that we were from the union, and the first thing they would say is, "Can you get me a job?" And it was -- it was house after house.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm.

CANNING: And I used to always -- you'd hear people say things about people who live in the inner city, or have to live on welfare, you know, some type of government support, and you just -- I would say, these people want to work, but there's no jobs.

BERNSTEIN: There are no jobs.

CANNING: And they're asking us for jobs. So, that stuck with me to this day.

BERNSTEIN: Were you ever -- aside from the time when Andrea was inciting a riot in the middle of the street --

CANNING: Yes. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: -- were there other times when you were nervous?

CANNING: Yes. We went to a neighborhood, um, that I don't know that anyone would have been on top of us. Um, I had to park my car -- it was more of an 00:35:00alley-type situation, and I was very nervous, and I told Andrea, I said, you know, "We don't have to do this street, you know, this alley if it makes you nervous." "Nope." She said. (laughter) "Get the list."

BERNSTEIN: You wouldn't go together in situations like that?

CANNING: We did.

BERNSTEIN: You did.

CANNING: But I was nervous taking her with me.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, I see.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Huh.

CANNING: And I said, "We don't have to go," and she said, "No, get the list. Let's go." So we -- we locked our things in the trunk of the car, and -- and we knew we wouldn't be able to see the car, so I just was a little nervous about, you know, if anything did happen, getting her back to the car, but everyone was wonderful.

BERNSTEIN: Hmm.

CANNING: So, it -- and I guess, sometimes I think it's my own, you know, predisposition to -- to areas like that.

BERNSTEIN: To look at --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- poverty and see danger --

CANNING: Mm-hmm.

BERNSTEIN: -- instead of seeing people who are looking for a job.

CANNING: Yes. Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Mm. That's so interesting. So, so what haven't I asked you? Are you involved -- you sound like your life is overfull with your family, your union, and your school.

CANNING: Well, my kids are grown now, and I finished school. I'm thinking about graduate school, but I'm not sure. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: OK.

CANNING: Um, but another thing that the union has made me understand is the importance of community service. Um, we had a human rights conference in Florida. I guess it's been three years ago. (door opening)

MALE: Excuse us, ladies. We just need to get some equipment stuff.

BERNSTEIN: Oh. Go right ahead.

MALE: Sorry, girls.

CANNING: That's OK.

BERNSTEIN: No problem. We'll just take a pause here.

BERNSTEIN: OK, so. (laughter) So here we are again, um, with the band that now has their equipment. Uh, you were telling me about --

CANNING: The human rights conference.

BERNSTEIN: The human rights conference.

CANNING: Um, it was in Orlando, and I remember Charlie came up to me, and he said, "Oh, got just the right person," and I was like, "What are you talking about?" He said, "I need you to volunteer for something." So I said, "OK." (laughter) So I went over to this table, and I signed up, and I just knew it was some kind of children's charity, didn't quite understand what everything was, but I had the evening free, so I said, "OK, I'll go." So I went on -- I hopped on a bus that they came and picked us up, and took us to this place called Give Kids the World, and that afternoon, we volunteered setting up Christmas for the kids that evening.

BERNSTEIN: And this is -- by "we" you mean staff members?

CANNING: Some of the staff members. Some of the staff members. And, um, we got there and it was this beautiful little village full of, um, little houses and little buildings that were geared towards children, and then come to find out that the children are, um, children who are ill, and I think it's kind of through the Make a Wish foundation, the kids who want a Disney experience, they 00:38:00go and they stay at this village, and the village provides them with park passes, and the kids just get kind of pampered the whole week, them and their families, they just get pampered the whole week. So, volunteered, uh, all afternoon, and we set up Christmas for -- every Thursday they do Christmas at the village. Um, and then that evening, we got to participate in the Christmas parade, where they dress you up as a character, and you get to go up and down the little streets, and greet the children and their families, and it was just a wonderful experience.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, my goodness.

CANNING: Um, so since then, I've tried to take a group of friends or family members every year back to participate in the same thing. So the last two years -- every year I try to get more people. Um, so the first year, my sister and my mom, and her friend, and another friend went, and then last year we added my aunt and my other sister, so we're just trying to every year get more people to go --

BERNSTEIN: Oh, what a nice thing.

CANNING: -- and volunteer. We'll just volunteer for the whole weekend and then come home.

BERNSTEIN: And this -- it's not over Chr-- it's not over Christmas, it's --

CANNING: No, it's year-round, but just every day at the -- the families stay for a week.

BERNSTEIN: Ah.

CANNING: And every day, they have a different activity or a theme, and Thursday just happens to be Christmas.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, I see. So you go for the Christmas --

CANNING: We did. We were there for the Christmas.

BERNSTEIN: (overlapping dialogue; inaudible) You have your character already. What's your character?

CANNING: Well, the first year, I was the snow princess. (laughter) I've been, um, an elf, um, last year what was I? Oh, I was a present last year. (laughter) So every year it's been something different, and then my youngest sister and I worked at the spa one day, and that was wonderful, because we got -- I have all boys, so it was wonderful to pamper little girls, and we would paint their fingernails and put makeup on them, and um, so it's just --

BERNSTEIN: (cough)

CANNING: -- such a wonderful, humbling experience.

BERNSTEIN: It didn't make you too sad?

CANNING: When you're there, no. Everything is so upbeat and so happy, but of course when you leave, it's just heartbreaking.

BERNSTEIN: Mm. What a great thing to do. And so how -- the -- the first year, it was a -- it was a --

CANNING: It was a union event. Yeah, they took the Young Machinists, and they volunteered, and --

BERNSTEIN: And you went along.

CANNING: -- I went along. Actually, I went along the next day. The Young Machinists were there for an event that -- the night before, and I went the next day with a few staff members, because they needed some extra volunteers, because it was actually raining that day, so they needed extra volunteers, because people had cancelled. So we were drenched. (laughter) We were rained all over all day. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: In probably costumes that weren't 100% waterproof.

CANNING: Oh. (laughter) We had our wet clothes on underneath the costumes, but the kids had a wonderful time. That's what was important.

BERNSTEIN: That's great.

CANNING: Yes. So that's another positive experience that I've come to, you know, a tradition in my life that was brought to me by the union.

BERNSTEIN: And what about your family, your children? Your husband is clearly 100% IAM supporter --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- the way he supports you and your IAM activities. What about your children and your extended family?

CANNING: My step -- my --

BERNSTEIN: Do you think they influenced --

CANNING: My -- both of my sisters now work at headquarters.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, you're kidding.

CANNING: No. Angie Bennett, downstairs, is my sister. Charlie's secretary.

BERNSTEIN: Really?

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Oh my God. I had no idea.

CANNING: Uh-huh. She's, um, she's my sister, and then my youngest sister, Carrie, works in the safety and health department with Mike Flinton. So it's truly, um --

BERNSTEIN: It's a family --

CANNING: -- trickle down to our family, yeah. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: And so your parents' ideas about union must have changed just a little with three girls.

CANNING: I think so. I just -- again, and it -- I don't --

BERNSTEIN: Or you don't talk about it?

CANNING: I don't normally talk about it a whole lot with them. Now, my sisters are -- they're my half-sisters, and they're probably -- they're closer to my parents than I am. Again, the whole age difference, I'm 10 and 12 years 00:42:00older than my sisters, so they have a different relationship with my parents than what I have.

BERNSTEIN: Right, yes.

CANNING: Um, and they're much closer, so I don't -- I'm sure they probably discuss it with them a little bit more than, than me. (laughter) And I tend to be a little outspoken, and I know my -- you know, it's not worth arguing any issues (laughter) so we kind of stay away from things (laughter) that we think might create a tense situation, like politics, religion, things like that. We just kind of --

BERNSTEIN: Are you religious?

CANNING: I'm not.

BERNSTEIN: Do you go to church?

CANNING: No. I was raised that you go to church every Sunday, and -- and I think what you were raised to believe and what you see become two different things, and as I got older, I kind of started questioning that. I'm not saying that I don't believe in God, or -- I don't believe in a lot of organized religion. So, and that's just from things that I've seen in my life.

BERNSTEIN: And are you comfort-- what do you think about the practice of having the pledge of allegiance, the national anthems, and a prayer to start each day?

CANNING: I -- I'm kind of a "live and let live" kind of person. I think that people -- you can say -- you can say things in your head, you can -- I believe in -- I don't want -- I don't think anyone should be offended, and I think if somebody feels offended, and it's not going to hurt anybody else, then I'm not sure what the big deal is. I think sometimes it all just becomes a big control issue more than anything else.

BERNSTEIN: That makes a lot of sense. So, tell me where your children are, as long as --

CANNING: My stepson is, um, 28. He is a CPA. He lives in northern Virginia. My 00:44:00oldest son is 28. He has two children.

BERNSTEIN: Oh my God.

CANNING: And he had children young. (laughter) And he's ra-- he raises --

BERNSTEIN: Nobody's going to believe you're a grandmother when I take your picture.

CANNING: Oh, thank you. (laughter)

BERNSTEIN: Nobody.

CANNING: Thank you. Um, he is a single father raising the children on his own, and he lives in Toledo. So that was another wonderful thing, I got to spend some time with him and my grandchildren while I was in Toledo. He works for a, like a steel mill type plant. It's not union. He said he's asked several times, because I -- I do really talk about the union with my boys. He's asked a few times, and he's say that they've tried to get the union in his workplace, but they haven't -- it's never gone anywhere, has never gone to a vote. They've never had the support. Um, he said -- but they treat them pretty well, so --

BERNSTEIN: OK.

CANNING: He's happy to have a job living in the Ohio area, (laughter) Toledo area, so. Uh, my youngest son works for, um, a union electrical company, so he 00:45:00is an IBEW member as well. He's 22, and he loves his union, and I love to see that passion in him being so young.

BERNSTEIN: Right.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: That's exciting.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Huh. Interesting.

CANNING: Uh-huh.

BERNSTEIN: So what, um... have you been active in civil rights or women's rights issues?

CANNING: I belong to NOW, I belong to [CLUE?], I've gone to some conventions and conferences and things like that. Um, I believe in women's rights and human rights. Again, this is not something I was raised to believe, so I'm kind of new to the whole organized movement.

BERNSTEIN: Mm-hmm. But you've dabbled in it --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- and follow it and --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: What about your experiences on the job? Have you ever felt, in the 00:46:00course of your employment, you know, life as an employee, that you --

CANNING: There's coworkers that you --

BERNSTEIN: -- issues --

CANNING: There's people that you work with sometimes that you know you're being maybe discounted, what you're saying isn't maybe taken quite as serious, or discounted when someone else, who maybe male, says the same thing, and that idea's brilliant, but (laughter) I think you're always going to have people like that. Um, doesn't make it right, but -- in a workplace situation, I can sometimes think, "Is it worth the battle to start, you know, a big issue if it's not that important?" Um.

BERNSTEIN: Do you have strategies of dealing with it? I mean, because part of it is, if you say something softly with a question, and then somebody else comes back and repeats it loudly and assertively --

CANNING: Oh, you're right. You're right.

BERNSTEIN: -- they get credit, and it's kind of your fault.

CANNING: You're -- and you're -- and I'm probably the first one guilty of that, and I've learned a lot of that, actually, in school, so I -- I've 00:47:00worked on these skills. (laughter) Taken a few workshops on my own time to -- to try learn how to be more assertive, because I was never raised to be assertive.

BERNSTEIN: So you have actually taken workshops.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: So that's --

CANNING: And I've done that, just kind of like weekend-type things, and on my own, outside of work.

BERNSTEIN: Huh.

CANNING: It's a more personal development skill as well.

BERNSTEIN: Well, and it's a way of dealing with issues --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- in a sort of concrete one-step-at-a-time --

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: -- way, yeah.

CANNING: Yes.

BERNSTEIN: Huh. Interesting. And what about race relations, I guess?

CANNING: That's the touchiest situation growing up with -- in my family. We were –- I, my -- I'm trying to say this diplomatically. That's probably part of my -- my problem with religion and things like that is we were raised in 00:48:00a more -- I would say prejudiced household, and when my sister, um -- my sister is married to an African-American man, and most of the people in my family did not attend her wedding. My son gave her away that day when he was probably 12 or 13.

BERNSTEIN: Oh, how sad.

CANNING: Yes. So, I mean, things have changed now, but you still hold -- I don't want to hold grudges, but I -- you know, I look back on this day in her life that should have been the best day of her life, and most of her family wasn't there because we were all raised to believe that you don't do that, and I just cannot fathom how you can do that to someone. And I remember telling -- 'cause one of my children has, um, a condition that, you know, he would be looked at and stared at when he was younger, and I used to tell my parents, he's got something that people look at him and judge him over, and it was a 00:49:00medical issue, and you would get mad when people would look at him differently, but you're looking at people differently over an issue that they can't help, so explain the difference. And the whole excuse, "Oh, we were just raised that way." So, it was that mentality --

BERNSTEIN: That's what they would say?

CANNING: Mm-hmm. That's a -- it's the cop-out, it's the excuse, it's --

BERNSTEIN: Yeah.

CANNING: -- we were raised that way. So they -- things have changed a lot since they've -- they've been married now for years, and they've had children, and my parents adore the children, but I just always think, one of these days, you're going to have to explain to these children why you were not at your daughter's wedding. So, but. So that's been a -- a big issue in my life. I've always tried to instill in my children no prejudice, no discrimination.

BERNSTEIN: Yeah. Huh. Where did your sister and her husband meet?

CANNING: They met, um, right after they graduated from high school.