More than a dozen people protested in front of the downtown Wilmington post office on Thursday, trying to protect the public postal service from privatization.
Chanting “US Mail, Not for Sale,” union workers and average citizens alike protested to bring attention to recent threats to the US Postal Service. Daniel Matthews is president of the local 145 American Postal Workers Union in Wilmington.
He said, "The administration has alluded to the fact that they want to privatize again, and this is the beginning of our movement. This is the tip of the sword.”
The Trump Administration has talked about selling off the package delivery component of the mail service, and Matthews says that would drive up mail costs for all Americans. “Right now, the US Postal Service is the low cost anchor, right?" he said, "We keep the prices down because we're constitutionally and congressionally required to provide a service to the American people.”
Matthews cited a recent report that shows USPS privatization would lead to substantial price increases for package delivery. That industry report, drafted by Wells Fargo, suggests privatization could put financial liabilities on the American taxpayer.
The Wilmington protest was matched by similar events at post offices across the country.