“Firing dancers? Not a solution” and “Union busting is disgusting!” rang out from nearly 200 protesters marching in front of the Dallas Black Dance Theater on Saturday afternoon.

The rally, led by the national union American Guild of Musical Artists, was a protest against auditions being held at the dance company to replace the company’s principal dancers, who fired last week.

There are contradictory narratives about what led to the firings. AGMA, which represents the fired dancers, says it was in response to the dancers’ union efforts. DBDT says the firings were due to an Instagram video the dancers posted that violated company policy.

All this happened after the dancers voted to form a union in May. AGMA filed unfair labor practice lawsuits against DBDT in June and early August, alleging issues such as retaliatory firing and restrictive employee policies.

Protesters on Saturday included community members, local and state officials, and members of other unions such as the Actors’ Equity Association, SAG-AFTRA and the Dallas AFL-CIO.

Griff Braun, national organizing director for AGMA, said the rally was well attended and was the first step in what could be a long fight.

“We are here to tell the management of the Dallas Black Dance Theater that they need to bring their artists back and sit down with us and negotiate a contract,” he said.

James Fuller, a DBDT spokesman, called the rally a “sham and a scam.” He said DBDT was willing to meet with the union and work out an agreement.

“We respect the union’s right to file a grievance. They did that. Now it will go through a process through the NLRB and we are ready and prepared to defend our decisions. If we find through a third party that we were wrong in our decision, of course there will be a resolution to that. But we believe we made the right decision for this company, the mission we have here and the brand we represent.”

Fuller said the decision to lay off dancers was “a very difficult challenge.”

“We went through a very formal process. The board was involved and it was very, very difficult and heartbreaking, but the violations they committed in that video were significant,” he said.

Fuller said DBDT is looking forward to next season. He said 15 dancers auditioned during the rally at the Dallas Black Dance Theater and 10 more dancers sent in video auditions.

Several elected officials showed their support for the fired dancers of the Dallas Black Dance Theater. Texas Rep. John Bryant (D-Dallas) and Dallas City Councilman Paul Ridley spoke at the rally Saturday.

“We believe in justice in Dallas. We believe in fair wages and fair working conditions in Dallas. We believe in the immorality in Dallas of trying to bust a union,” Bryant told the crowd.

Nile Ruff, one of the fired DBDT dancers, said in a speech to the protesters: “Dallas Black, listen to us. You need us!”

“I would love the opportunity to continue the legacy of Dallas Black Dance. … We want to give a voice to people whose voices are not always heard,” she said.

Horace Alexander Blake, 73, traveled from the Denton County area to show his support for the dancers. He is a member of the Alliance for Retired Americans and has long enjoyed the Dallas Black Dance Theater’s performances.

“Sometimes we ignore the people we don’t think about often, like entertainers. But they are a really important part of our economy. They bring money into the country and deserve good opportunities.”

Brinda Gurumoorthy, 28, is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and the Alliance/AFT, a union that represents Dallas ISD teachers. Sweating in the heat, she says she doesn’t understand why the Dallas Black Dance Theater didn’t think firing its dancers would “backfire hugely.”

“I guess they thought they could get away with it, but I think it’s pretty clear that there’s a lot of support for the dancers in the community and it’s not that easy to get around labor laws just because we’re in Texas,” she said.

Other members of the congregation who showed up have close ties to the fired DBDT dancers. Laketress Jones, 31, attends church with Sierra Noelle Jones and has taken dance lessons with Micah Isaiah. Both Isaiah and Jones were fired last week.

“We want to make sure this situation is remedied and they are supported in everything they do,” Jones said. “This feels like an injustice to all of us. We feel it everywhere, from the church to those who simply support and enjoy the arts.”

Derick McKoy Jr., one of the fired dancers, concluded the speeches at the rally by saying that the dancers would continue to fight against unfair treatment.

“We are not just fighting for artists in Texas, but for artists around the world who simply want to protect their right to have a say in their workplace and fight for better working conditions,” he said.

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