In 97 degree heat, thousands of low-wage workers marched in Richmond, Virginia this weekend to begin the next phase of the Fight for 15 movement — one that will concentrate on raising the minimum wage in the South.

“Eyes on ’16, we want $15,” and "Put some respect on my check," chanted a group of cooks and cashiers from Memphis, Tennessee and elsewhere across the country, before the group took a vote on their next strategic moves.



In a written "Richmond Resolution" (embedded below), the movement pledged to "support legislative action to raise minimum wage floors across cities and states that were once part of the Confederacy” and to “challenge wealthy and powerful political interests that claim to care for ordinary families but nullify any attempt to raise our wages.”

This second commitment was a reference to so-called "preemption laws" in places such as Alabama and Missouri, where state legislators have cancelled out minimum wage raises approved by local authorities in majority-black cities like Birmingham, Kansas City, and St. Louis.

In June, workers in Alabama filed a federal civil rights suit to try to overturn the state’s preemption of a local raise approved by Birmingham’s predominantly black city council. Mary Kay Henry, President of the more than 2-million-member Service Employees International Union, which financially backs the Fight for 15, told BuzzFeed News that more suits like this one could be part of the movement going forward.