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Edition: |
pb |
| ISBN: |
9780813513720 |
| Publisher: |
Rutgers |
| Release Date: |
2008-05-23 |
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ITEM OVERVIEW
"A substantial contribution to our knowledge of American labor history... Goldberg graphically illuminates the failure of industrial unionism in the textile industry." -Victor Green, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
A Tale of Three Cities traces the efforts of textile workers in Paterson and Passaic, New Jersey, and Lawrence, Massachusetts, to organize a permanent industrial union during the WWI-era. In 1919, major strikes for the eight-hour day and higher wages erupted simultaneously in all three cities, leading to the formation of the Amalgamated Textile Workers of America (ATWA), a socialist-oriented industrial union led by AJ Muste. Goldberg examines and compares the rise and fall of union activity in each city and analyzes why the ATWA ultimately failed.
He begins by exploring the impact of the war upon workers, the ethnic composition of the work force in each city, and the labor traditions of each community. Goldberg finds that, in each city, union organizers faced a different set of difficulties. He goes on to explore these internal divisions and examines external forces (such as repressive tactics of local and federal authorities, blacklisting of workers, and spying) that caused the union to suffer.
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