PSI deeply regrets the passing of its former president William “Bill” Lucy, secretary-treasurer emeritus of AFSCME

PSI, its affiliates and all of our staff mourn the death of the great American trade union leader Bill Lucy, a former president of our global federation and an inspirational activist in the trade union movement in the fight for social and racial equality.

PSI General Secretary, Daniel Bertossa, expresses his condolences to Lucy's family and friends and expresses his deep solidarity with the trade union movement in the United States, in particular with the comrades of AFSCME.

Lucy was born on 26 November 1933 in Memphis, Tennessee and since the 1960s was a union leader and a major civil rights activist in his country. Known as a staunch defender of human rights, he marched alongside Martin Luther King Jr and helped to lead the successful anti-apartheid campaign in the United States.

Over the past six decades, Lucy has been a constant voice and presence in the trade union world and in the global struggle for social justice. In 1972, he was elected secretary-treasurer of AFSCME (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees), an organisation affiliated to the AFL-CIO where Lucy also served as a member of the executive board. In the 1970s, he was a founder of CBTU, an organisation dedicated to representing the interests of black workers in the trade union movement and the first US labour organisation to condemn South Africa's apartheid regime. He also helped form FSAM, the main anti-apartheid movement in the United States. A coalition of community organisations, trade unions and students, it led protests and demonstrations against the oppressive government and for the release of Nelson Mandela. As the first African American president of PSI, Lucy was responsible for establishing the organisation's Committee to Combat Racism, Xenophobia and All Forms of Discrimination.

"Lucy was a great inspiration to PSI in terms of developing inclusion policies in the trade union movement, particularly in the fight against racism. He was a driving force in the fight against all forms of discrimination. If PSI stands out today as a trade union organisation actively engaged in the fight for equal opportunities, we owe it to Lucy's work and actions," said Jocelio Drummond, PSI’s regional secretary for Inter-America, who worked directly with Lucy in PSI.

Drummond also recalls that it was through Lucy's leadership that the US trade union movement built closer relations with Latin American and African countries. "He was a great promoter of deepening relationships between the US and the countries of Latin America, Africa and Asia. He was also a strong advocate for the Solidarity Center’s support for projects that strengthened the fight for equality. For all these reasons, Lucy was undoubtedly a great leader for PSI, and it was under his presidency that PSI's policy in developing countries was consolidated," concluded Drummond.

Agripina Hurtado, current coordinator of PSI Inter-America’s Committee to Combat Racism, Xenophobia and All Forms of Discrimination and a great admirer of the trade union leader, remembered that Lucy “was one of the campaign planners who fought worldwide to get Nelson Mandela out of prison, the driving force behind the Durban conference, and the creator and mentor of PSI’s committee to fight racism, xenophobia and all related forms of discrimination and intolerance. Despite having retired from trade union activity at the Inter-America regional conference in Cartagena de Indias in 2010, he was in Zimbabwe, Africa last year, working to help improve the situation in that African country”.

Workers around the world will always be grateful for Lucy's contributions and tireless dedication to the fight for freedom, social justice and equality.

William Lucy, present!