Project 2012

Monday, 30 April 2012
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Here We Are by Maria Dunn (click here for the lyrics)

Hot off the Press:

100x70_new_2012feb03   Registration form - Picnic in the Park Admission and dinner

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   Volunteer Form

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   Display Tables and Donations - Request Form

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   Transportation/Accommodation Form

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   Checklist for Unions

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   Day at a Glance

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   Centennial 2012 Update #3

100x70_new_2012feb03   Maria Dunn AFL Centennial Tour to Kick off in May!

Other News:


Our History


The Alberta Labour History Institute (ALHI) has been working with the Alberta Federation of Labour to prepare for its Centennial in 2012. We believe that this is a great opportunity to draw attention to the role that Alberta's workers, their unions, and community organizations have played in building this province.

Project 2012 came out of the 2007 AFL Convention when delegates unanimously passed a resolution to sponsor events and projects leading up to this Centennial. ALHI was asked to play a key role in the process. Since then, a great many unions, affiliates of the AFL, and non-affiliates have collaborated with ALHI to research, produce materials, and promote activities featuring the history of labour in Alberta.

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Community Activities

2012 activities are being organized by community groups across Alberta.  For example:

  • A group in Calgary is planning a Labour History Walking Tour to describe places in Calgary and area where significant events and developments have taken place. A booklet will also contain pictures and brief profiles of memorable people in the past, illustrating the "face of labour" in Calgary.
  • Members of the Red Deer and District Labour Council are planning to erect a huge stainless steel disk on the side of a building in their downtown, depicting the work done in member unions.
  • Labour will be an integral part of homecoming celebrations in Fort McMurray in September 2012 and part of Miners' Day in the Crowsnest Pass area.

The list goes on ...

How you can help:  Ask your locals to find out what is happening in their communities and to participate in local planning committees where they exist.

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Community Contacts

  • Fort McMurray - Jim Haywood at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Edmonton - Brian Henderson at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Red Deer - Karen Reay at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Calgary - Susan Keeley at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Drumheller - Susan Keeley at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Hinton - Eric Rosendahl at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Grande Prairie - Mary Dahr at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Crowsnest Pass - Diane Peterson at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Lethbridge - Richard Merrick at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Medicine Hat - Dave Condon at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Olds - Jason Heistad at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Brooks - Bill Bennett at 403-501-5955

Other communities:

  • Karen Werlin at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Winston Gereluk at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Nancy Furlong at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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Maria Dunn Musical Tour

The intention is to launch Project 2012 activities in Alberta communities with a labour history musical tour performance by a troupe headed by Maria Dunn, a well-known Alberta singer.

How you can help:  Ask locals to put members on notice to attend these performances. We will be counting on every union to promote the Maria Dunn performances to ensure they are a success. If you have a special date to take into consideration, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it directly as the schedule will be finalized in early September.

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Other Anniversaries and Special Events

A number of unions will also be celebrating 100th anniversaries or other special events in 2012. These plans can only strengthen our overall efforts to make 2012 into the Year of Alberta Labour. We intend to assist in publicizing these events through Project 2012.

How you can help: Tell us about your anniversary or special event ASAP so we can include it in our 2012 Alberta Labour History Program book in April 2012. We will add your date to the special edition of the annual labour history calendar that ALHI will publish this fall.

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Museums, Archives and Libraries

A large number of museums and archives have agreed to work with Project 2012 to mount displays during Spring 2012. We are also collaborating with local and regional historical societies.

How you can help: Encourage your members to visit facilities where displays are being hosted. A list will appear in our spring program. Better yet, encourage locals to work with local planning committees that will liaise with staff at these facilities.

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2012 Banners

2012 will be a year for banners declaring this to be labour's year! Everyone is encouraged to produce banners for this purpose. In additionl, Project 2012 will provide (10 to 12-foot) banners declaring 2012 as a Celebration of 100 Years of Labour for hanging on buildings in towns and cities across Alberta early in Spring 2012. Window and wall banners will also be provided.

How you can help: Plan a banner to hang in or outside your office. Suggest places where our 2012 banners can be hung in towns and cities. Public-sector unions are encouraged to ask their employers for the right to post banners on their public buildings, e.g., hospitals, government buildings, post offices, etc.

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Late Spring 2012 Events

  • ALHI is organizing a special two-day labour history conference June 14-16 in Edmonton.
  • The AFL is organizing a day-long celebration of labour on June 16, 2012 at the Fort Edmonton Park. This family-friendly event is open to all. It will be a day to celebrate the AFL's centennial anniversary and commemorate 100 years of workers' struggles. A presentation and short program, musical performance, union displays, theatre and kids' games will be topped off with a BBQ dinner and dance. It will kick off with a "Banner Extravaganza" of unions, labour councils and other organizations. Fort Edmonton Park will be billing the event as a celebration of labour.

How can you help:  PROVIDE ADVANCE NOTICE OF THESE EVENTS AND TELL MEMBERS TO MARK THEIR CALENDARS. INFORM YOUR RETIREES AND SEND US A LIST OF FORMER ACTIVISTS. In particular, every union or organization in the province should send a large number of members to the June 16th event. We want to make it the largest and noisiest display of labour solidarity seen in the last 100 years! Better yet, plan to "take a piece of the day" - put up a display or sponsor an event featuring your union!

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