NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The American Friends of the Yitzhak Rabin Center (AFYRC) will honor Joseph T. Hansen, International President of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), with the 2013 Yitzhak Rabin Public Service Award. AFYRC is a non-profit organization supporting the mission of The Yitzhak Rabin Center, a national institute dedicated to the late Prime Minister, Defense Minister and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Yitzhak Rabin.
The award will be presented to Hansen at a gala dinner taking place at The Capital Hilton in Washington, DC on December 4, 2013. Rabin’s daughter and chair of the Yitzhak Rabin Center in Tel Aviv, Dalia, will be the keynote speaker and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi will present the award to Hansen.
Similar to Yitzhak Rabin who pioneered the fight for public service, equal opportunity, peace, leadership and social justice for all Israelis, Hansen is unwaveringly dedicated to advocating for working people around the world. Currently, he is leading the transformation of the 1.3 million member UFCW into a dynamic movement to build worker power through coordinated bargaining and concentrated growth. Hansen focuses on revitalizing the labor movement to not only meet the challenges of the global economy and bring new hope, opportunities and improvements to workers and their families, but to also improve their standards of living. Hansen will be recognized at the gala dinner for his bold leadership, dedicated public service and for inspiring workers to join the UFCW’s movement for social and economic justice.
“Joseph Hansen is one of the staunchest and most influential advocates for working people in North America,” said Dalia Rabin. “My father would be proud of his efforts in helping to improve the lives of working people throughout the world.”
During his time in office, Rabin initiated significant changes in national priorities, investing in education and social welfare, and infrastructure, with the goal of equalizing opportunity for all Israeli citizens. Hansen joins a prominent list of past AFYRC honorees who exemplify Rabin’s core beliefs in job dignity, fair pay and adequate working conditions. Past national union award recipients include: James P. Hoffa, General President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Cecil E. Roberts, President of the United Mine Workers of America, Terry O’Sullivan, President of the Laborers International Union of America, Ed McElroy, President, American Federation of Teachers, Morton Bahr, President and Barbara J. Easterling, Secretary-Treasurer of the Communications Workers of America, and J. David Cox, then Secretary-Treasurer, now President of the American Federation of Government Employees.
For information about the gala dinner, please call (347) 797-5888 or email hansendinner@friendsofrabin.org. For information on The American Friends of the Yitzhak Rabin Center, please visit www.friendsofrabin.org. The AFYRC is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that supports the mission of the Yitzhak Rabin Center in Tel Aviv.
About The Yitzhak Rabin Center
The Yitzhak Rabin Center is the official memorial dedicated to teaching the legacy of the late Israeli Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin, who devoted his life to public service, equal opportunity, peace, leadership, social justice and educational opportunity for all Israelis. Modeled after an American Presidential library, The Yitzhak Rabin Center contains archives, an educational department, event and public meeting space, and the Israeli Museum, a state-of-the-art facility that tells the compelling story of the state of Israel and Rabin’s life. The Center’s educational programming reinforces democratic values, promotes tolerance and understanding among diverse groups in Israeli society, and teaches conflict resolution with the goal of helping form future leaders of Israel.