Labor Movement’s Social Conscience

Remembered mainly as the longtime president of the United Auto Workers, Walter Reuther was one of the modern labor movement’s most important figures, not only because of his success as a union leader, but because of his lifelong passion for social...

Groundbreaking, Heartbreaking ‘Harvest of Shame’

Half a century ago, the plight of the nation’s migrant farm workers was brought home to millions of Americans, many of whom had just enjoyed their biggest meal of the year.

Mother Jones

Although vilified by her detractors as “the most dangerous woman in America,” struggling workers all over the nation had a more affectionate way of referring to Mary Harris Jones: They called her “Mother.”

Sanitation Workers’ Strike Spurs Cause of Economic Justice

During a heavy rainstorm on Jan. 31, 1968, about two dozen Memphis sewer workers — all of them black — were sent home without pay. Their orders came from supervisors — all of them white — who were paid for their day’s work.

Sam Reiss: Eyewitness to Labor History

The photography of a dedicated unionist with an artist’s eye is now available online, in an exhibit sponsored by the Tamiment Library at New York University. The images captured by Sam Reiss, known to many as “labor’s photographer,” provide a rich...

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