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Work History News, Winter-Spring 2016

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Work History News, Winter-Spring 2016 New York Labor History’s Annual Conference May 5-7, 2016 Work History News THURSDAY, MAY 5TH SATURDAY, MAY 7TH NYLHA's Film Festival Program & Opening All-day – NYLHA Annual Labor History Night of the Annual NYLHA Conference Conference, “Can't Turn Back: Unfinished Tasks of the Civil Rights Movement” New York Labor History Association, Inc. FRIDAY MAY 6TH Tamiment Library, NYU A Bridge Between Past and Present Volume 33 No 1 Winter | Spring 2016 Evening Keynote Address Activists and scholars will address enduring and timely topics, including mass organizing, policing, Facing the future collectively– with hope housing, and education. Historians and organizers together—where the past meets the present. By Jane LaTour he annual John Commerford Labor Education Awards T ceremony on December 2nd felt The Great Hunger like the future—and a far happier future at that. Both award recipients brought a Black Potatoes, The Story of the evicted families huddling in a faire economic policies; c) hire huge amount of enthusiasm with them Great Irish Famine, 1845-1850 ditch, “coffin ships,” and forced starving men to do outdoor to the 1199/SEIU Penthouse on 42nd By Susan Campbell Bartoletti, evictions. manual labor (mostly building Street, and it was contagious. NYLHA Boston: Houghton Mifflin Black Potatoes targets young roads)—without killing them board member Gail Malmgreen, the Company, 2001 readers. (Bartoletti used to teach (in their weakened condition) event’s chief organizer and M.C., 8th grade.) Nearly every double- with overwork—or worse— introduced labor attorney Larry Cary, Reviewed by Joe Doyle paged spread of Black Potatoes pampering them in workhouses who presented the award to Stuart usan Campbell Bartoletti is illustrated. Young readers (combination factory- Applebaum, President of the Retail, has a gift for writing can grasp the tragedy of 1840s dormitories). (Each of P.M. Wholesale and Department Store Union. S books with an emotional Ireland simply looking at the Peel’s dilemmas sounds eerily Cary noted that, as a labor history Vural Leyla credit: Photo wallop. Her 1999 book, pictures and reading Bartoletti’s familiar today.) association, we look to the past in an Stuart Applebaum and Larry Cary Leyla Vural and Sara Horowitz poignant captions. When they’re Bartoletti tells just how badly Growing Up in Coal Country, attempt to understand how we got back against economic injustice,” he said. He “Income inequality is the plague of the older they can read Bartoletti’s British policy failed Ireland. She is based on the child labor to such a bad place. “In that context, spoke about the contradiction of organizing 21st century,” Applebaum said. “There is powerful narrative. cottages of peasants who fell personalizes Ireland’s vast loss of experiences of her Pennsylvania Stuart Applebaum is trying to roll back in New York City, the wealthiest city in the only one way we can respond. We have In 172 pages (plus a useful behind on the rent. Already life during the 1840s Famine by in-laws, searingly illustrated with the anti-immigrant tide and the efforts world, yet being surrounded by poverty. He to come together collectively—with a timeline) Bartoletti skewers starving, now they became weaving together anecdotal eye- Lewis Hine photos of haggard, to take away the right to a union shop contrasted the percentage of people living in collective voice—a call to action. Time British government policy: homeless. (Bartoletti devotes witness accounts by survivors coal-smudged “breaker boys.” for public sector workers. These are after time, we are inspired by people who 1) exporting cattle and grain Chapter 9 to the Irish patriots and aid workers, all of them poverty with the handful of Walton family Black Potatoes, The Story of the huge challenges and we are fortunate stand up and take collective action— from Ireland while six million who responded in 1848 with traumatized, some of their members who hold a disproportionate Great Irish Famine, 1845-1850 to have people devising strategies to people who have been marginalized.” of its citizens had nothing to the Young Ireland insurrection.) protests still white-hot 170 years share of the nation’s wealth, while their wrings your heart with Ireland’s meet them—and winning—like Stuart He described the 17-week strike by the eat. (Before the potato blight 3) Prime Minister Robert Peel later, “…the Irish people weren’t corporation, Wal-Mart, refuses to pay its sufferings. Applebaum,” Cary said. workers at the Mott Applesauce plant, ruined the potato harvest, tied himself in knots trying starving because there was no employees a living wage—or even to provide The horrors of famine in opposition to its multi-millionaire six million Irish peasants ate simultaneously to: a) import vast food. They were starving because Building better lives them with regular work schedules. “The CEO. Clearly, the morale-building, A million people starved nothing but potatoes—more quantities of corn meal from the they did not have money to buy people working for Wal-Mart are recipients Accepting the award, Mr. Applebaum hope and energy boost that the RWDSU to death, another two million than seven pounds a day, on U.S. to avert mass starvation of public assistance. We are subsidizing the food.” The bitter irony: much spoke with great passion about the president brings to the union’s organizing emigrated from Ireland, three- average. Potatoes were the only in Ireland—without outraging wealth of the Wal-Mart heirs,” he said. of what went wrong in 1840s campaigns his union is leading. He began campaigns was present in the room. quarters of them to the U.S. crop productive (and nutritious) opponents in Parliament Ireland—and Britain’s hapless by saying that the award is for those union The union’s campaigns to organize NYLHA board member Leyla (many ending up in New enough—to feed large peasant who’d rather see Irishmen efforts to address the crisis—is members who are struggling just to build the city’s car wash workers, the Fight Vural presented the next award to Sara York). Haunting contemporary families on the tiny acreage die—than receive charity; b) still going wrong in parts of the better lives for their families. “It’s a joy to be For Fifteen Campaign, the fight to Horowitz, the founder and Executive newspaper engravings show they could afford to rent.); 2) abolish Britain’s mercantilist/ world today. And we’re equally involved with such great people and to deal keep Wal-Mart out of the Bronx, have Director of the Freelancers Union. She skeletal waifs scrabbling in the British soldiers stood guard as protectionist grain import laws hapless today trying to save lives with the world in which we find ourselves. all been carried out by building ties to gave a passionate oration about Horowitz dirt for blackened potatoes; wrecking crews knocked down in favor of free trade/laissez- and help the victims. It is only the labor movement that can fight grass-roots community organizations. Continued on page 2 Facing the future CALENDAR Continued from page 1 “Queer Teacher Organizing: The Religious and her accomplishments, and described Right, and Battles over Child Protection her own experience working for the in South Florida’s Schools, 1977-1997.” Save the Date union in a research position, and about This paper addressed the long and short Horowitz’s deep affinity for the history term responses of South Florida’s queer of the labor movement. “Sidney Hillman teachers to Anita Bryant’s 1977 “Save Our was one of her heroes. Her daughter was Children” campaign. “The three papers New York Labor born on Samuel Gompers’ birthday.” Vural are outstanding examples of the range and described the long list of prestigious awards high quality of the work being submitted History’s Annual that have been showered on Horowitz for to the committee,” Greenberg said. In her work, and the inspiration she provides NYLHA President Irwin Yellowitz (l.) and a accepting his award, Odessky praised the Conference THURSDAY, MARCH 17, 6 PM for others: “She shows what’s possible. She full (pent)house. pioneering scholarship of NYLHA board shows what we can do.” cycle.” Horowitz is re-imagining strategies to member Miriam Frank, and thanked her Book Party at Tamiment Library, NYU Strategies for change unite people—outside the usual limits but, for her mentorship of his work. May 5-7, 2016 according to her inspired and intelligent NYLHA President Irwin Yellowitz Fighting for Total Person Horowitz began by saying that she vision, well within the realm of the possible. delivered this year’s remarks on the Unionism: Harold Gibbons, Ernest loved the Commerford Awards because she In keeping with tradition, the prizes significance of John Commerford, a labor Calloway, and Working-Class loved the idea of a labor leader who was for student scholarship were awarded at leader of the 1830s. “He did not have the always re-inventing the labor movement, Citizenship, by Bob Bussel the event. Professor Brian Greenberg, benefit of major prior unionization, and in a reference to John Commerford. She of Monmouth College, who serves thus much of what he accomplished was a MAY 4-MAY 18 noted that the movement is about people along with Robert Wechsler, of Lehman new response to a new situation,” Yellowitz coming together to solve problems. 5th Annual Workers Unite! Film College, CUNY, as a judge, presented the said. To read Dr. Yellowitz’s full remarks, She spoke about the critical issue the Festival awards. Greenberg noted that, this year, and a synopsis of the three prize-winning Freelancers Union was founded in 1995 to Visit workersunitefilmfestival.org the NYLHA received more submissions student papers, visit the NYLHA website.
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