#1557 Tactics and Counter-Tactics of the Struggle for Labor Rights
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Jay Tomlinson
4.5 • 3.4K Ratings
🗓️ 6 May 2023
⏱️ 64 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Air Date 5/5/2023
Today, we take a look at the history and present of the labor movement to demonstrate how times may change but the fundamental struggle, including many of the exact tactics, remains the same. Plus, get ready to get excited about salts, the secret ingredient in labor movement.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: May Day and the Haymarket Massacre Part 1 - Rattling the Bars, Real News Network - Air Date 5-1-23
RNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez joins Rattling the Bars for a discussion on the history of May Day, and how the persecution of organizers in the wake of the Haymarket Massacre highlights the importance of extending solidarity
Ch. 2: The History of May Day - The Young Turks - Air Date 5-2-23
The Young Turks discuss the history of May Day.
Ch. 3: Labor in America Part 1 - The Zero Hour - Air Date 1-21-23
Heidi Shierholz is President of the Economic Policy Institute
Ch. 4: Secret Union Tactic Fuels Unprecedented Labor Wins - Bloomberg Originals - Air Date 4-3-23
Bloomberg's Josh Eidelson explains the tactic's recent revival after exclusive visits to undercover training sessions over the past year.
Ch. 5: Donna Murch on Rutgers Labor Action - CounterSpin - Air Date 4-21-23
We’ll get an update from Donna Murch, associate professor of history at Rutgers, and New Brunswick chapter president of Rutgers AAUP-AFT.
Ch. 6: Labor in America Part 2 - The Zero Hour - Air Date 1-21-23
Ch. 7: Union Organizing 101 Building Class Solidarity Every Day - The Majority Report - Air Date 1-22-18
Jane McAlevey on strengthening the union movement.
Ch. 8: May Day and the Haymarket Massacre Part 2 - Rattling the Bars, Real News Network - Air Date 5-1-23
MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)
Ch. 9: May Day and the Haymarket Massacre Part 3 - Rattling the Bars, Real News Network - Air Date 5-1-23
Ch. 10: Jane McAlevey on Deep Organizing - Jacobin - Air Date 12-10-18
Unions are the weakest they have been in a century. But, as Jane McAlevey explains, the story of a group of Philadelphia nurses shows that deep organizing and a willingness to strike can still win.
VOICEMAILS
Ch. 11: Nuances to add to the JK Rowling episode - Soph
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 12: Final comments on framing arguments in defense of trans lives
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)
SHOW IMAGE
Description: Labor protesters march on a city sidewalk. The person in the front holds a placard that says “Support Amazon Labor Union.” The person behind them holds a sign that says “Starbucks: Union Busting is Disgusting.” A third person in the line wears a sign that says “Safety & Unions For All Workers.”
Credits: “Philly Solidarity with Starbucks, Amazon & all workers organizing!” By Joe Piette, Flickr | License: CC BY- SA 2.0 | Changes: Slight increase in contrast
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to this episode of the award-winning Best of the Left podcast and which we shall |
| 0:07.1 | take a look at the history and present of the labor movement to demonstrate how times |
| 0:11.9 | may change but the fundamental struggle, including many of the exact tactics remain the same, |
| 0:18.2 | plus get ready to get excited about salts, the secret ingredient in the labor movement. |
| 0:23.9 | Clips today are from rattling the bars from the Real News Network, the Young Turks, the |
| 0:28.8 | Zero Hour Bloomberg Originals and by the way if you are surprised there's a clip from |
| 0:34.0 | Bloomberg in a Best of the Left episode about the labor movement just know that I am too, |
| 0:39.7 | but you're not going to want to miss that one. |
| 0:41.8 | And there's also Counter-Spin and the Majority Report with additional members only clips |
| 0:46.5 | from rattling the bars and jack-a-bin. |
| 0:55.7 | I'm going to just read to you all a bit of a passage from a great article that was written |
| 1:00.7 | in 2019 by the brilliant author Rachel Angeline for the magazine in these times, shout out to |
| 1:07.9 | our comrades over at In These Times Magazine. |
| 1:12.1 | So this article was called Why May Day Continues to Capture the Hearts and Imaginations |
| 1:17.7 | of Workers. |
| 1:19.5 | And Rachel writes in this article, quote, May Day was born in Chicago in 1886. |
| 1:26.6 | During the late 19th century, workers tired of 10 to 16 hour days and little pay began |
| 1:32.8 | to organize along socialists and anarchist principles. |
| 1:37.0 | Whether in formal unions, political parties, or cultural groups, working class people in |
| 1:42.0 | the United States were motivated by their dismal conditions and the hope they found in |
| 1:46.6 | any capitalist ideas. |
| 1:49.4 | With discussion about unfair working conditions spreading like a fever, the 1884 convention |
... |
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