Book: Solidarity Divided: The Crisis in Organized Labor and a New Path toward Social Justice

[Discussion list for COMM-ORG]

From: "Melinda Chateauvert" <mchateau at aasp.umd.edu>


Forwarding book announcement from af-am list
m


 > >
 > > The University of California Press  is pleased to announce the
 > > publication of:
 > >
 > > Solidarity Divided: The Crisis in Organized Labor and a New Path
 > > toward Social Justice , A new direction for labor by two of its
 > > leading activist intellectuals
 > >
 > > Bill Fletcher, Jr., co-founder of the Center for Labor Renewal, is a
 > > columnist and long-time activist. He served as President of
 > > TransAfrica Forum and was formerly the Education Director and later
 > > Assistant to the President of the AFL-CIO. He is the author of _The
Indispensable Ally:
 > > Black Workers and the Formation of the Congress of Industrial
 > > Relations, 1934-1941. _Fernando Gapasin is a Central Labor Council
 > > President, Labor Educator, author, and former professor of Industrial
 > > Relations and Chicana/o Studies at Pennsylvania State University and
 > > the University of California, Los Angeles.
 > >
 > > http://go.ucpress.edu/SolidarityDivided
 > >
 > > "Anyone concerned with the struggles of America's working people is
 > > going to be fascinated by this rare, insiders' look at the external
 > > forces and internal fumblings that have so drastically weakened the
 > > labor movement. Both in its sweeping analysis and priceless reportage,
 > > _Solidarity Divided_ is a deeply illuminating book and a solid
 > > argument for why our unions need to reclaim their historic heritage as
 > > a militant, grassroots movement."-Barbara Ehrenreich, author of
 > > _Nickel and Dimed_ "Bill Fletcher and Fernando Gapasin have put
 > > together a hard-hitting analysis of the crisis facing organized labor.
 > > But this is not just something for people involved in unions. If we
 > > are to build a movement for social justice then we must confront the
 > > issues that they are raising."-Danny Glover "This is an
 > > extraordinarily important and provocative reflection on the
 > > limitations of self-reform and reinvention within the American labor
 > > movement. The authors provide readers with a unique first-hand view of
 > > internal debates, personalities, and decision-making processes but
 > > also use their intimate knowledge of union culture and carefully
 > > narrated case studies to transcend mere stone-throwing. This book is
 > > unlikely to be matched by any other journalistic account or memoir....
 > > A landmark in all debates about 'what next' for labor."-Mike Davis,
 > > author of _Prisoners of the American Dream_ "There are few writers and
 > > activists whom I would rather read on the recent past, the present and
 > > the future of the labor movement than Fernando Gapasin and William
 > > Fletcher. This is an especially accessible and balanced exploration of
 > > recent efforts at community unionism, international solidarity,
 > > coalition with nonunion workers and empowerment of immigrants. Above
 > > all this is far and away the best argument for the importance of
 > > central labor unions that I have read."-David R. Roediger, author of
 > > _Working Toward Whiteness_ "This is a very valuable work, well-written
 > > and useful to union activists and students of working-class life and
 > > history alike. Fletcher and Gapasin have performed a public service of
 > > high quality by bringing into the national conversation an enlightened
 > > focus on labor and its relation to other sectors of the population,
 > > seeking to reinvigorate and enlarge our democracy. This book is 'a
 > > star to steer by' as we move through troubled waters in a dark time,
 > > confident that in our substantive unity of purpose, we can and shall
 > > overcome."-Jack O'Dell, former associate editor, _Freedomways_
 > > magazine
 > >
 > >
 > >
 > > The U.S. trade union movement finds itself today on a global
 > > battlefield filled with landmines and littered with the bodies of
 > > various social movements and struggles. Candid, incisive, and
 > > accessible, _Solidarity Divided _is a critical examination of labor's
 > > current crisis and a plan for a bold new way forward into the
 > > twenty-first century. Bill Fletcher and Fernando Gapasin, two longtime
 > > union insiders whose experiences as activists of color grant them a
 > > unique vantage on the problems now facing U.S. labor, offer a
 > > remarkable mix of vivid history and probing analysis. They chart
 > > changes in U.S. manufacturing, examine the onslaught of globalization,
 > > consider the influence of the environment on labor, and provide the
 > > first broad analysis of the fallout from the 2000 and 2004 elections
 > > on the U.S. labor movement. Ultimately calling for a wide-ranging
 > > reexamination of the ideological and structural underpinnings of
 > > today's labor movement, this is essential reading for understanding how
the battle for social justice can be fought and won.
 > >
 > > Full information about the book, including the table of contents, is
 > > available online: http://go.ucpress.edu/SolidarityDivided
 > >
 > >