White Shirt Day remembers the Flint sit-down strike

FLINT, Mich. (WNEM) - Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist visited Flint to celebrate tomorrow’s White Shirt Day with the United Auto Workers.

White Shirt Day remembers the workers who took part in the Flint sit-down strike.

It ended on Feb. 11, 1937, establishing the UAW as the official bargaining representative for General Motors employees.

“This is really a seminal moment in American history where you saw these workers here at UAW, here in Flint, recognize that they needed to be respected,” said Gilchrist.

Gilchrist joined active UAW members, retirees, and community leaders to mark the occasion, adding the importance of White Shirt Day goes beyond the auto industry.

“It showed that when people, I say ‘stand tall,’ but when people sit down together in solidarity, they can really change things,” he said.

General Motors recently announced an investment of $800 million in its Flint and Bay City plants.

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