MILESTONE:
Walter Johnson died last Thursday. He was 87. Here’s what Sen. Leland Yee had to say.
“Walter Johnson was an extraordinary leader for working families and served as a father figure and mentor to so many of us in public service. He always said that labor should be the conscience of our communities. He helped ensure that San Francisco became a welcoming city and he led by example—always fighting for the disadvantaged, for civil rights, and for justice. He will be sorely missed. I send my deepest condolences to his family and to all who loved him.”
When I was laid off from UCSF, Walter Johnson was instrumental in getting me rehired. When Carol died in 2004, Walter Johnson was at the memorial to express his condolences. I remember I always liked the funny labor poems he wrote. He was known for his humor.
Walter began his career helping to integrate the Woolworth’s lunch counter and getting arrested on auto row. He worked at Sears and following a strike for union recognition, he led the Retail Clerks Union, Local 1100, later the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW). He was elected to the position of secretary-treasurer of the San Francisco Labor Council in 1985 and retired in 2004. But he was still active in labor demonstrations, walking picket lines, and getting arrested at sit-ins.
