West Virginia CWA Members Honor Byrd in Memorial Procession

Scores of red-shirted CWA members honored the life of West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd on July 2, joining a somber march behind a horse-drawn caisson that ended at a memorial service at Charleston's statehouse.

Byrd, who cared deeply about workers and the struggles of working families, died at age 92, after serving a record 51 years in the U.S. Senate. In addition to CWA members and other trade unionists, President Obama, Vice President Biden, President Bill Clinton and elected officials from both parties attended the memorial service to remember Byrd.

Senator Edward Kennedy's widow, Victoria, spoke, recalling the moment last Christmas Eve when Byrd made his way to the Senate floor to vote for health care reform. "I was in the gallery, and tears flowed down my cheeks when he said, 'Mr. President, this is for my friend, Ted Kennedy,'" she said.