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Chinese workers on the transcontinental railroad went on strike to protest dangerous work at low pay. Lots of photos, including the famous one of placing the last spike. Notice what's missing?
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The Haymarket Riots and the fight for the 8 hour workday, with many photos. Includes comprehension questions, vocab quiz and succinct two-sentence definition of anarchist.
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The Oxnard Strike of 1903 was started by the first interracial farm workers' union in the US, composed of Mexican and Japanese farmworkers.
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A short history of the Wobblies, the first multi-racial union in America. The Wobblies, or Industrial Workers of the World, used direct action to fight for workers' rights.
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| WOBBLIES AND FREE SPEECH |
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DOC | PDF | ODT |
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Cops arrested IWW organizers when they talked to workers in Spokane back in 1909. So 500 workers took turns speaking and getting arrested until Spokane changed its laws.
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| "I DREAMED I SAW JOE HILL" SONG |
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DOC | PDF | ODT |
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A simple, beautiful song about one of the most important organizers in American History. Performed by everyone from Woody Guthrie to Joan Baez to Phil Ochs. Goes well with any IWW story.
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The 1912 Bread and Roses strike was the first strike led by women and immigrants. Has the line, "One police officer could control 10 men, but you needed 10 police officers to control one woman." In two parts.
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The Highlander school, which taught Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr., may be the most important adult education school in US history. Part one is about its accomplishments, part two is about its methods (student-centered popular education). Includes a page of questions for each part.
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| "CALIFORNIA STARS" SONG |
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A short, sweet song about workin' for money and your faraway love. This is for the Mermaid Avenue cover.
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Migrant Mother is among the most iconic photos from American history. This lesson plan uses that photo to explore the Great Depression.
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Inspired millions of women to enter the workplace. With two pictures of Rosie, including the less-known (and better) Norman Rockwell version.
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| "WE SHALL OVERCOME" SONG |
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DOC | PDF | ODT |
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"We Shall Overcome," as covered by Bruce Springsteen. Just the lyrics and a few pointed questions. Did you know it was originally a labor song, but became a song for the Civil Rights movement via the Highlander School? (Highlander Download DOC | PDF | ODT ) You better, if you're going to answer the attached questions. With a short biography of Bruce.
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| KING AND THE STRIKE |
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DOC | PDF | ODT |
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Not many people know King was supporting a (mostly black) sanitation workers' strike when he was killed. Includes the last, easy to understand paragraph of King's "Promised Land" speech.
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Cesar Chavez co-founded one of the most important labor groups in US history.
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Dolores Huerta, continues to organize for immigrant rights.
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| FROM GANGS TO UNIONS |
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A short story about former gang members joining the building trades in LA. Inspirational and good. From Sam Quinones, LA Times.
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| STRIKE AT A WALMART FACTORY |
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A short story about a strike at a Walmart factory over the right to unionize. Guess where? I won't tell, but revealing the secret location of this tale will blow your Chinese students' minds, as they don't report this stuff in the media there.
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A story about a bankrupt factory in Argentina that was taken over by its workers and is now run democratically. Goes great before the Haymarket story.
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Kidnap the Boss to negotiate fewer job losses and better severance pay. Being France, they do give the boss a delicious dinner.
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