I’ve been a proud member of my union for over 7 years now. I have worked hard to educate myself about union issues and trying to be involved in different aspects of it. I cannot control when I get to work, but I can control what I understand about the union and staying involved. It has given me a sense of control in an out-of-control career path.
I have felt very lucky to be involved with the union the ways that I am and a big part of that was how I started my union involvement. The first event I attended was before I actually joined SAG-AFTRA. I was invited to an event that was supporting the merger of SAG and AFTRA (which were different unions until the merger). I felt a little out of place when I went to the event, but I was so grateful that I went. I met amazing people and learned so much. It was overwhelming, but it helped me learn that being a union actor isn’t just a job title, it is being a part of a bigger movement. And I have tried to keep that idea in my head ever since.
I have always appreciated my friend who brought me to that event before I joined the union and I have wanted to pay it forward ever since. I have tried to bring friends of mine who are eligible to join to the events that are open to non-members when I can. Some of them appreciate learning about the union like I did and some just get bombarded with so much information that they aren’t able to take it in. But I always love when actors who haven’t joined yet come to check things out because that is a big step and it can feel scary.
I was lucky enough to get to bring one of my workout friends to a union related event recently. We are getting ready for election season again and there will be more opportunities to bring new people in to events like this one. I warned my friend that there would be a lot of things said that she wouldn’t get and that she should be prepared to be overwhelmed, but she would also get to meet a lot of amazing people and hopefully she would be inspired a bit by what has been happening within the union lately.
And that’s exactly what happened. She told me after that she was definitely confused at points and I tried to clarify things when I could so she could understand them. But she also got to hear amazing accomplishments that we’ve had in the past year or two and how it will benefit her when she does join (which hopefully will be soon!). And she also did get to meet some of the most incredible people. I hope that I will always have these little “pinch me” moments where I’m shocked that these actors are my peers and that they know me. I had a lot of those moments at this event and my friend really enjoyed getting to meet actors that she knows from film and tv.
And it wasn’t just great watching my friend experience her first union event like how I did so many years ago. I got a lot out of it too. Every time I get to meet with actors who want to be involved in the union and to continue to strengthen it I leave on a high. I feel inspired to do more and a push to make sure other actors understand what is going on with the union. Sometimes it feels like the union is a different entity than the actors who are a part of it, but the union is us and we need to remember that. If we want there to be a change, we are in charge of that.
And of course, I love getting to see people who I don’t always get to see. There are other actors that I only get to see around election season and it’s like a big family reunion. Everyone is so kind and generous. I could go on and on about how I feel so lucky to be a part of a group like this, but it’s going to sound mushy and like I’m under some sort of spell. But that’s honestly how I feel getting to be around these other members. There’s just something magical when you get to be around the people who want to see our union be the best it can be and they really work hard for everyone else.
I will have more and more union events coming up soon because of election season. I will be running with my slate again and I know that there will be events to get the slate together so we can all make sure we know each other and we can coordinate different campaign events. We also still have general union meetings coming up regarding the various contact negotiations (one just ended and another will be starting up soon). I am trying to make it a priority to attend a variety of events so I can be knowledgeable about different issues, but I also don’t want to risk burnout if I do too much. And I know with election season starting that the risk of burnout is high. I just have to find the balance with it just like everything else.
But even with the risk of burnout, I will keep going to events and bringing new people in. And I think getting to see someone else be inspired the same way that I am inspired will also help me not get too overwhelmed and burned out with all the events happening. Getting to watch a friend have the same excitement about things as me really does make me feel even more encouraged to keep doing what I’ve been doing.
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