Tag Archives: community organizing

Bargaining for the Common Good Comes of Age

Posted on March 11, 2019 by

The week-long strike by the United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) in January 2019 marked the most significant struggle yet in a movement by teachers and other public-sector workers called Bargaining for the Common Good.  By striking over a long … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues, Labor and Community Activism | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Cleaning Up the Lease Option Mess in Working-Class Housing

Posted on October 9, 2017 by

Home ownership may be the most iconic emblem of economic stability for American families, but the pursuit of that goal has drawn too many working-class families into the deceptive agreements knows as “lease option purchase contracts.” To understand the impact … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues, Labor and Community Activism, The Working Class and the Economy | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Getting Over in the Heart of Dixie

Posted on August 14, 2017 by

When people think about progressive battles in the U.S., they probably don’t think about Alabama. Instead, the state is known as the home of U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the kind of conservative, populist politics that led Drew Pendergrass … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues, Labor and Community Activism | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

On Race, Class, and Two Referendums in Richmond

Posted on January 23, 2017 by

On election night in November, the success of local ballot measures raising the minimum wage, endorsing election law reform, or calling for other much-needed policy changes produced some political cheer on an otherwise dismal evening. Such measures may be our … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues, Labor and Community Activism | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Will “Accompanying” Work as an Organizing Principle?

Posted on April 21, 2014 by

Liberals and progressives have generally seen union and community organizing as the best tools to resist corporate power and provide the working class with a political voice.  But in this era of neoliberalism, these traditional models of organizing have lost … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Issues, John Russo, Labor and Community Activism | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Future of Labor Unions and Community Coalitions

Posted on May 20, 2013 by

Over the last 30 years, the American labor movement has periodically gone through wrenching discussions of its failures to organize new workers and grow its membership. See, for example,  “The Changing Situation of Workers and Their Unions” (February, 1985), “New … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Issues, John Russo, Labor and Community Activism | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Debating Economic Development: Downtown versus the Neighborhood

Posted on August 23, 2010 by

Last week, the Center for Working-Class Studies distributed a commentary on how proponents of economic development and local government leaders were ignoring the continuing struggles of Youngstown’s neighborhoods.  “A Renaissance for Whom? Youngstown and Its Neighborhoods” attempted to capture community … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues, John Russo, The Working Class and the Economy, Youngstown | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Health care for all: caring for the uninsured

Posted on September 22, 2008 by

As Jack Metzgar wrote last week, health coverage is an important issue for the working class.  As health insurance becomes less available and as urban hospitals around the country restructure, working-class people are bearing the brunt of the health care … Continue reading →

Posted in John Russo, Working-class politics, Youngstown | Tagged , , | Leave a comment