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shavawnellsbury's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.5
aerlenbach's review against another edition
5.0
This book serves as a history of class warfare.
The state has always served at the behest of capital over the interests of the working class. Every inch of dignity won over the decades, centuries has been won with worker blood and sweat. Capitalists leverage the state’s monopoly on violence as a literal bludgeon against workers fighting for a better life.
The greatest economic boom in this country coincided with the only 30 year period in US history where rising wages trended alongside productivity (1948-1979). What went wrong? The Red Scares nuked the real organizers and those still in charge became fat & happy without focusing on what their jobs actually were: To make sure workers have a seat at the table in deciding how the work gets done.
Then what happened? Ronald Reagan, NAFTA, outsourcing, deindustrialization, and the hollowing out of the working class. Now we have a larger wealth gap than before the Great Depression.
The most powerful tool the working class has to make change is revoking their labor. Those who seek to sabotage such efforts are not allies of the working class.
“Intersectionality without class consciousness is just Identity politics. Class consciousness without intersectionality is class reductionism. We need both. We have the same enemy.”
This isn’t a review, this is a rant. Anyway, great book! Highly recommended.
The state has always served at the behest of capital over the interests of the working class. Every inch of dignity won over the decades, centuries has been won with worker blood and sweat. Capitalists leverage the state’s monopoly on violence as a literal bludgeon against workers fighting for a better life.
The greatest economic boom in this country coincided with the only 30 year period in US history where rising wages trended alongside productivity (1948-1979). What went wrong? The Red Scares nuked the real organizers and those still in charge became fat & happy without focusing on what their jobs actually were: To make sure workers have a seat at the table in deciding how the work gets done.
Then what happened? Ronald Reagan, NAFTA, outsourcing, deindustrialization, and the hollowing out of the working class. Now we have a larger wealth gap than before the Great Depression.
The most powerful tool the working class has to make change is revoking their labor. Those who seek to sabotage such efforts are not allies of the working class.
“Intersectionality without class consciousness is just Identity politics. Class consciousness without intersectionality is class reductionism. We need both. We have the same enemy.”
This isn’t a review, this is a rant. Anyway, great book! Highly recommended.
bethreadsandnaps's review against another edition
4.0
This gave a great history of the labor movement in the United States. Much of it reads like a textbook, which is informative, albeit a little dry. It would have been great to have more personal stories or reflections added, but since this went back to the 1800s, it would have been difficult to occur.
schefjess's review against another edition
5.0
A total misnomer. There were like 80 million strikes in this book.
The first two strikes centered on the role of women, then of slaves. My first thought was, "Ok, this guy is hitting his diversity credit at the beginning." But really, the themes were present throughout. My experience digest history books is that there's a chapter on each minority, but the central story is about the white male experience. This book offers a thorough history of the misogyny & racism that plagued unions & was often an influencing factor in the perspectives of both the union leaders & the corporations.
This book couldn't be more relevant.
The first two strikes centered on the role of women, then of slaves. My first thought was, "Ok, this guy is hitting his diversity credit at the beginning." But really, the themes were present throughout. My experience digest history books is that there's a chapter on each minority, but the central story is about the white male experience. This book offers a thorough history of the misogyny & racism that plagued unions & was often an influencing factor in the perspectives of both the union leaders & the corporations.
This book couldn't be more relevant.
stevia333k's review against another edition
4.0
I basically listened to this in 1 go & it was very very good!
Very helpful, especially as an update to "settlers". it explained my childhood's economy, my family's previous generation's economy, etc, relatively concisely. however, it should be heavily noted that the last chapter reflecting on what the future can hold was somewhat heartbreaking & definitely obsolete. since the point made was that unions need govt backing, we now know we'll have to have a much more thorough strike than even a general strike.
So I'm taking off 1 star for obsolete predictions.
Very helpful, especially as an update to "settlers". it explained my childhood's economy, my family's previous generation's economy, etc, relatively concisely. however, it should be heavily noted that the last chapter reflecting on what the future can hold was somewhat heartbreaking & definitely obsolete. since the point made was that unions need govt backing, we now know we'll have to have a much more thorough strike than even a general strike.
So I'm taking off 1 star for obsolete predictions.
citrine's review against another edition
4.0
I read this one pretty quickly and I read it a while ago, but it's well written and effective. It is a good history, as far as I know, of the 10 strikes in question, and shows that striking, work stopping, sabotage, and the like have been part of the American worker's arsenal since the beginning - and that American workers aren't just white men. I bought the book because of the second chapter, where the author discusses the striking of enslaved people in America, one of the most overlooked labor actions of American history. What I remember taking away from the book is that whether a strike ends in brutal, sometimes murderous repression, or with strikers victorious often rests on the response of the capital S State. If the State backs the strikers, there's a greater chance they will win (or at least not get hurt). If the State backs corporate power, as is so often in its nature, the strike will almost certainly fail. Erik Loomis is thus of the opinion of reforming the Democratic Party to allow more favorable State conditions when labor actions occur; you can take that or leave it. If you're looking for a good, short, effective labor history, I can definitely recommend it!