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cnnr876's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
4.0
fight like hell is a great primer to many of the untold parts of the epic american labor fight. i am more enlightened and educated now than when i started this book. plenty of exciting jumping off points for further research and reading. kelly does a terrific job diving into the hidden side of american labor (i.e. everything that is not exclusively white, male, blue-collar) and showing how critical those fights and communities were for the protections american workers have today. particularly excited to read more about lucy parsons, and reading everything else that kim kelly puts out.
mixedgirlreading's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
unladylike's review
3.0
I really hoped this would be a phenomenal 5 star+ read, given my politics, the identities I carry, and the fact that I've been an organizer for the first workers' union at the public library where I work for the past couple years. Kim Kelly has written *magazine articles* about labor struggles for some years, but this is her first attempt at compiling her knowledge and interviews into a book. It tells some amazing and important stories but fails to explain some of the key concepts and history, or even make a coherent argument for labor unions and strikes in general.
The final chapters on incarcerated workers were really good. Here are the notes I took while listening to the audiobook:
“No matter what the fight, don't be ladylike! God almighty made women and the Rockefeller gang of thieves made the ladies.”
― Mother Jones
“One policeman can handle ten men, while it takes ten policemen to handle one woman!” Lawrence’s District Attorney griped.
Picketing women sliced off the suspenders of one policeman *after* first stipping him of his gun, baton, and badge, then pulled his pants off, and dangled him off a bridge over icy water!!!
Holy shit, how did I never hear about the EPIC (still going for some) strike and boycott against Coors? Coors (in Golden, Colorado) was using polygraphs on employees and potential hires, trying to weed out “deviant behavior” i.e. queerness, among other objectionable practices. Various unions as well as Chicano groups and Harvey Milk (!!!) joined forces to encourage the boycott. More reasons Coors should NOT have the right to own or sponsor Denver Pride.
When talking about unions such as the Longshoremen’s support of sexual freedom, Kelly claims they were fighting for “LGBTQIA” rights and fair treatment, but I find that claim dubious. More likely it was merely GL-friendly. Projecting current preferred acronyms back on the past seems (what’s the word for reading history through the lens and assumptions of the present? Google says it’s “presentism” but that’s not the word I was remembering)
“It’s anti-union to red-bait, queer-bait, or queen-bait.”
Also, how did I not know about the radical badass Bayard Rustin?
This chapter on disability is really getting to me. Like, I’m glad it’s in the book, but she’s made multiple inappropriate jokes referring to different disabilities. When talking about miners getting “Black Lung,” she says they got “shafted” [by their union that had mishandled funds and didn’t have their backs]. *Eyeroll*
Kelly has introduced about a thousand different acronyms for groups even when she mentions their name only once, but she sucks at defining terms. I’ve never heard of “wildcat” strikes but she’s thrown it around at multiple points in the book like it’s common parlance. And one disappointed reviewer made a good point that she doesn’t even go into labor theory, Marxism, etc. She just refers to Marxists assuming the reader has a thorough understanding of the philosophy.
The final chapters on incarcerated workers were really good. Here are the notes I took while listening to the audiobook:
“No matter what the fight, don't be ladylike! God almighty made women and the Rockefeller gang of thieves made the ladies.”
― Mother Jones
“One policeman can handle ten men, while it takes ten policemen to handle one woman!” Lawrence’s District Attorney griped.
Picketing women sliced off the suspenders of one policeman *after* first stipping him of his gun, baton, and badge, then pulled his pants off, and dangled him off a bridge over icy water!!!
Holy shit, how did I never hear about the EPIC (still going for some) strike and boycott against Coors? Coors (in Golden, Colorado) was using polygraphs on employees and potential hires, trying to weed out “deviant behavior” i.e. queerness, among other objectionable practices. Various unions as well as Chicano groups and Harvey Milk (!!!) joined forces to encourage the boycott. More reasons Coors should NOT have the right to own or sponsor Denver Pride.
When talking about unions such as the Longshoremen’s support of sexual freedom, Kelly claims they were fighting for “LGBTQIA” rights and fair treatment, but I find that claim dubious. More likely it was merely GL-friendly. Projecting current preferred acronyms back on the past seems (what’s the word for reading history through the lens and assumptions of the present? Google says it’s “presentism” but that’s not the word I was remembering)
“It’s anti-union to red-bait, queer-bait, or queen-bait.”
Also, how did I not know about the radical badass Bayard Rustin?
This chapter on disability is really getting to me. Like, I’m glad it’s in the book, but she’s made multiple inappropriate jokes referring to different disabilities. When talking about miners getting “Black Lung,” she says they got “shafted” [by their union that had mishandled funds and didn’t have their backs]. *Eyeroll*
Kelly has introduced about a thousand different acronyms for groups even when she mentions their name only once, but she sucks at defining terms. I’ve never heard of “wildcat” strikes but she’s thrown it around at multiple points in the book like it’s common parlance. And one disappointed reviewer made a good point that she doesn’t even go into labor theory, Marxism, etc. She just refers to Marxists assuming the reader has a thorough understanding of the philosophy.
hushed's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
5.0
excellent survey in the history of labor struggle in the so-called united states, especially with a strong focus on labor organizing which is intentionally ignored.
chillcox15's review
3.0
While I think there’s a lot of utility behind a book like this: a fleetfooted corrective that seeks to sketch a number of contributors to the history of the labor struggle who aren’t straight white men. That being said, it was a little disappointing to be so surface level and in some ways repetitive. I’m a huge fan of Kim Kelly and I think this is very informed by her time writing for Teen Vogue. This is a great book to give to a young radical and see what they really connect to and where it takes them. I do hope that Kelly’s next book digs a bit deeper into a single issue or story rather than this type of survey!
barium_squirrel's review
dark
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
5.0
A fascinating look at labor history, focusing on the stories of women, minorities, and marginalized people. This book is compassionate and thrilling. I'd like to own this one
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Murder, Police brutality, Racism, Sexism, and Sexual harassment
dangerousnerd's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
4.5