E62: League of Revolutionary Black Workers, part 2
Working Class History
Working Class History
5.0 • 813 Ratings
🗓️ 7 March 2022
⏱️ 54 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This podcast is only possible because of support from our listeners on patreon. Join us and get access to exclusive content at https://patreon.com/workingclasshistory
This is an improved, extended and partially re-recorded version of our podcast episode 12. We have added more audio clips from other members of the League, including General Baker, Mitch and Darryl “Waistline” Mitchell. We have also added narrative for additional detail, context and to tell the story in a more cohesive manner. Whether you listened to the original episode or not, we hope you enjoy it!
Get hold of Dan and Herb's books on these links:
– Dan Georgakas and Marvin Surkin, Detroit: I Do Mind Dying: A Study in Urban Revolution – https://bookshop.org/a/80203/9781608462216
– Herb Boyd, Black Detroit: A People’s History of Self-Determination – https://bookshop.org/a/80203/9780062346636
More information, sources, acknowledgements and more on the webpage for this episode: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e61-the-league-of-revolutionary-black-workers-in-detroit/
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hi, and welcome back to part two of our double podcast episode on the League of Revolutionary Black Workers in Detroit. |
| 0:05.9 | If you haven't listened to Part 1 yet, I'd go back and listen to that first. |
| 0:20.1 | This is a Union Town, a Union Town, all down the line. |
| 0:25.5 | This is a Union Town, a Union Town, haul down the line. |
| 0:30.1 | Before we get into the episode, this is just a quick reminder that we are only able to produce this podcast thanks to support from our listeners on Patreon. |
| 0:37.9 | Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, |
| 0:42.5 | bonus episodes, free and discounted merch and other content. |
| 0:45.9 | Join us and find out more at patreon.com slash working class history. |
| 0:50.3 | Link in the show notes. |
| 0:52.0 | Just a short content note that later on in this episode, there are two |
| 0:55.1 | brief mentions of sexual violence. Where we left off last time, the League of Revolutionary |
| 1:00.8 | Black Workers was pre-definitively shut out of official positions within the United Auto Workers |
| 1:05.6 | Union, the UAW. This left the league no option other than to pursue their strategy of independent organizing, |
| 1:12.1 | media and communication, as General Baker, a worker at the Dodge Main Plant, explained. |
| 1:18.2 | After the Dodge Main Strike, people came from everywhere to want to be organized, and we |
| 1:24.3 | would frankly just tell them, listen, we have paper, we have ink, we have some typesetting capabilities. |
| 1:30.9 | We have some students and you that help you distribute. |
| 1:34.2 | We're not in your plant. |
| 1:35.5 | We're not going in your plant. |
| 1:37.9 | Whatever is taking place in your plant, you got to write it, you got to organize it, and we'll give you this level of support. And that's how we |
| 1:46.5 | build L-Rum and Frum and J-Rum and Cry-Rum and all of those other plants, all those other organizations |
| 1:54.1 | came off of that with that model. We could not contain editorial control or nothing like that. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Working Class History, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Working Class History and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.