Striking Bronx public defendersMore than 500 public defender workers are now on strike in New York City and Detroit, in an expanding rebellion against poverty wages, healthcare cuts and crushing caseloads. They were joined Monday by roughly 300 workers at the Bronx Defenders, which provides free representation to Bronx residents facing criminal, family, immigration and housing cases. Bronx Defenders Executive Director Juval O. Scott acknowledged the organization is hemorrhaging attorneys because of inadequate pay but insisted there “was limited funding available to us.” Ten days ago, in a message of solidarity with striking Brooklyn Defender Services workers, Lehman warned that only a unified walkout across the sector could break the isolation on which management and the bureaucracy depend. “The October UAW election is not a matter of choosing a better representative to act on your behalf,” Lehman concluded.