Honoring the Work of Marty Bennett

Please join us in celebrating and honoring the work of Marty Bennett as he retires from the organization he co-founded, North Bay Jobs with Justice. The breadth of Marty's contribution to the labor movement, to the worker's rights struggles, and to the passage of several important bills and campaigns around the North Bay cannot be covered in just one-night event. But we will certainly try!

We hope you'll come give Marty a proper send-off, hear from an array of speakers from state elected representatives, workers, community and help ensure the work Marty started can continue on. And don't forget your cash for our raffle prizes!

Doors open at 5:30 for light refreshments and free beer and wine. Dinner will be served. This event is ADA accessible, Spanish translation available, this is a family-friendly event. All are welcome.

More about Marty:

Martin Bennett is Instructor Emeritus of American History at Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) in Sonoma County California where he has taught for twenty-five years.

He is Co-Chair of North Bay Jobs with Justice, a community-labor coalition of 20 unions and community based organizations, affiliated with the national Jobs with Justice network. He is also a Research and Policy Analyst for UNITE HERE 2850, a union representing restaurant, hotel, gaming, and food service workers in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is one of the founders of the North Bay Organizing Project (NBOP), a faith-based community-organizing project in Sonoma County affiliated with the Gamaliel Foundation, and he served on the NBOP Leadership Council.

He is also past president of the SRJC/California Federation of Teachers Local 1946 and was a board member of Sonoma County Conservation Action. He writes regularly about labor and civil rights issues for the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Sonoma Gazette, Beyond the Chron, California Progress Report and other print and online publications.

In 2006 the SRJC Faculty Senate honored him for “Outstanding Contributions and Professional Achievements.” In 2012 the SRJC Classified Senate named him the “Outstanding Faculty of the Year.” In addition, he has received numerous awards for his leadership in the labor, environmental, and civil rights movements. In 2005, the California State Assembly honored him for his civic activism and community service and the North Bay Labor Council (AFL-CIO) presented him the “Harry Bridges Labor Leadership Achievement Award.” In 2015, he was honored as the “Sonoma County Democrat of the Year” by the Sonoma County Democratic Party and in 2016, the Peace and Justice Center of Sonoma County presented him their annual “Peace and Justice Award.” In 2017, the Fannie Lou Hamer Institute on Citizenship and Democracy at Jackson State University honored him with the “Fannie Lou Hamer Humanitarian Award” as one of the founders of the Institute in 1997.