Labor History Today

29:30

Built by Workers, Remembered by Workers

Labor History Today ·

2026/10/04

On Labor History Today: An automobile museum full of cars—but where are the workers who built them? Retired autoworker and union leader Mark Strolle helped answer that question with “Assembled in Lansing,” a new permanent exhibit at Michigan’s R.E. Olds Transportation Museum.In this conversation with Chris Garlock, a shorter version of which originally aired on the Labor Heritage Power Hour, Strolle traces Lansing’s labor history through sit-down strikes, the successful one-day Lansing Labor

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29:30

“Working History” Is Back on the Job

Labor History Today ·

2026/09/27

On Labor History Today: What can labor history teach us about the present—and the possibility of change? In this episode, we share excerpts from the relaunch of the Working History podcast. Beth English talks with historians Sarah McNamara, Julie Greene, Eileen Boris, and Mae Ngai about the many kinds of work and workers that belong in labor history, from immigrant and domestic workers to the people who built the Panama Canal. Plus, Rick Smith tells the story of Shays’ Rebellion on Labor History in

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29:30

Labor Day, Solidarity Day and a Fight for Justice

Labor History Today ·

2026/09/20

On this week’s Labor History Today: Delta pilots trace the 1894 Pullman Strike’s connections to Labor Day and today’s airline labor law; more than 400,000 unionists march on Washington for 1981’s Solidarity Day; and Latin American tunnel workers wage a five-year fight against wage discrimination in Vancouver. Plus, Youngstown remembers the devastating steel-mill shutdown known as Black Monday.Sources: Engage: The Podcast For Delta Pilots; On The Line: Stories of BC Workers; Labor History in

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29:30

Ralph Chaplin’s Legacy, Ybor City’s Radical Past

Labor History Today ·

2026/09/13

On this week’s Labor History Today, we explore how working people preserve the history that official markers, museums and tours too often leave out.Every Labor Day, union members and community activists gather at Ralph Chaplin’s gravesite in Tacoma, Washington, to sing “Solidarity Forever” and honor the Wobbly poet, writer and artist who created labor’s enduring anthem. Vance Lelli and Nathe Lawver of the Pierce County Central Labor Council share the story of the annual commemoration—and explain

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28:54

Trouble! at Coal Creek (Encore)

Labor History Today ·

2026/09/06

On this week’s Labor History Today: Activist and artist Austin Sauerbrei talks about his debut graphic novel Trouble! at Coal Creek, which brings to life the 1890s miners’ uprising in Tennessee, where striking workers and Black prisoners found common cause against exploitation. It’s a moving call for solidarity, told in powerful words and images. Austin talked with our colleague Robert Lindgren, who hosts and produces Labor Exchange, the excellent radio show that airs weekly on KGNU Community Radio

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29:29

Detroit’s Ring of Labor

Labor History Today ·

2026/08/30

On this week’s Labor History Today: John Dick and Dave Elsila of the Michigan Labor History Society take Chris Garlock and Elise Bryant on a tour of Transcending, Detroit’s spectacular monument to working people and the achievements of organized labor. Plus, a musical tribute to Dolly Parton and her songs of work, family and working-class life. Labor History in 2:00 marks the Battle of Blair Mountain and FDR’s 1935 effort to make the wealthiest Americans pay their fair share.CLICK HERE to watch a

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29:30

Fan the Flames of Discontent: The Little Red Songbook...

Labor History Today ·

2026/08/23

On this week’s Labor History Today: The IWW’s Little Red Songbook was created to “fan the flames of discontent”—and its songs have carried solidarity into workplaces, union halls, picket lines and jail cells ever since.To mark the 117th anniversary of its first publication, listeners share their favorite songs from the legendary collection: “We Have Fed You All for a Thousand Years,” “Mr. Block,” “The Red Flag,” “The Preacher and the Slave” and “Dump the Bosses Off Your Back.” We also hear “Ain’t

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29:30

Richard Trumka on The Art of Solidarity

Labor History Today ·

2026/08/16

On this week’s Labor History Today: Richard Trumka traces the history of labor art from the coalfields of Harlan County and the Flint sit-down strike to the Pittston mineworkers’ strike. Speaking at the Labor Heritage Foundation’s Great Labor Arts Exchange in June 2009, the future AFL-CIO president explains how songs, murals, films and stories preserve workers’ struggles and carry solidarity from one generation to the next. Trumka was elected AFL-CIO president on September 16, 2009, and served until

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29:34

The People’s Historian

Labor History Today ·

2026/08/09

On this week’s Labor History Today: Dave Zirin discusses his new book, The People's Historian: The Outsized Life of Howard Zinn, exploring the historian's influence on generations of activists—and even on Hollywood.Then, marking the August 7 birthday of labor organizer Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, producer Anthony Dominiczak looks back at the life of the legendary "Rebel Girl" and the fight over her historical legacy. Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a

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29:30

Labor History Today: No Pasarán Then, No Pasarán Now

Labor History Today ·

2026/08/02

A hand-held fan donated to the Museum of Vancouver tells the story of Canadian workers who volunteered to fight fascism in the Spanish Civil War. Its wooden struts bear the signatures of loggers, miners, and trade unionists from British Columbia who traveled thousands of miles to defend Spain's democratically elected government.From the On the Line: Stories of BC Workers podcast, historian David York explores the lives behind those names and the labor movement's long tradition of international

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34:28

Patriotism, Paranoia, and Labor on Trial (Encore)

Labor History Today ·

2026/07/26

On this week’s Labor History Today: Historian Dr. Jeffrey Johnson tells the story of the 1916 San Francisco Preparedness Day bombing and the infamous frame-up of labor leader Tom Mooney, who spent more than two decades behind bars before his eventual release and pardon. Recorded live at the 9th Annual Reuther-Pollock Labor History Symposium, Johnson explores how xenophobia, anti-labor fervor, and miscarriages of justice from a century ago still echo loudly today.Plus, on Labor History in 2:00: The

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29:25

The People's Game, The People's Strike

Labor History Today ·

2026/07/19

As Spain and Argentina meet in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, Labor History Today looks beyond the action on the pitch to explore soccer's deep roots in working-class communities and labor struggles. British labor journalist and trade unionist Simon Sapper traces the history of "the people's game," from its origins in factory towns and mining communities to today's battles over billionaire ownership, rising ticket prices, and the commercialization of the world's most popular sport. Then we revisit

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30:00

Red Jerseys in Detroit (Encore)

Labor History Today ·

2026/07/13

On this week’s Labor History Today: The FIFA World Cup is once again captivating fans around the globe as the 2026 tournament heads into the semifinal round, with France facing Spain on July 14 and England taking on Argentina on July 15. While soccer is often viewed as a relatively recent arrival in the United States, the game actually has deep roots here, thanks to immigrant workers from Britain and Europe who brought football to mining towns, factories, and mill communities in the late nineteenth

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29:21

The People Make History

Labor History Today ·

2026/07/05

On this week's Labor History Today: As the nation reflects on Independence Day, we turn from the "Great Men" of history to the voices of the people. We begin with Frederick Douglass's searing 1852 speech, What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?, performed by James Earl Jones, then hear from the Labor and Working-Class History Association's People's 250 project, where workers, historians, and activists share stories that place working people at the center of the American story. Plus, on Labor

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29:30

The Martyr of Kensington: Carl Mackley and the Aberle...

Labor History Today ·

2026/06/28

This week on Labor History Today: Silk stockings were all the rage in the 1920s, but the workers who made them paid the price. When the H.C. Aberle Hosiery Company in Philadelphia imposed wage cuts and harsher working conditions in 1930, more than a thousand workers walked out, setting off one of the city's most dramatic labor struggles. As tensions escalated between strikers, strikebreakers, police, and company management, 22-year-old Carl Mackley was killed in a confrontation that galvanized

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29:30

Made by Labour (Encore)

Labor History Today ·

2026/06/21

This week on Labor History Today (originally broadcast 1/11/2026), Simon Sapper talks with historian Martin Wright, co-author of Made by Labour: A Material and Visual History of British Labor, 1780–1924. The book traces the rise of the world’s first modern labor movement through banners, boxes, coins, tools, and images created by working people during the Industrial Revolution and beyond—right up to the moment labor stood on the brink of political power in the 1920s. Questions, comments, or

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31:55

The Donora Death Fog (Encore)

Labor History Today ·

2026/06/14

On this week’s Labor History Today (Originally released October 12, 2025): A visit to the Donora Smog Museum, where a six-day inversion in 1948 trapped toxic fumes over a Pennsylvania mill town and changed how the U.S. thinks about work, health, and accountability.And, on Labor History in 2:00: The Mother Jones Monument is Dedicated. Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com Labor History

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29:28

Slater the Traitor, Father of American Manufacturing

Labor History Today ·

2026/06/07

As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, Labor History Today visits Old Slater Mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, widely considered the birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution.In this excerpt from The Manufacturing Report, host Scott Paul tours the historic mill with National Park Service Ranger Allison Horrocks. Together they explore how Samuel Slater brought Britain's closely guarded textile technology to the United States, the role of Moses Brown and early investors, the

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29:30

The stories labor history remembers—and forgets

Labor History Today ·

2026/05/31

On Labor History Today: What happens if the labor laws that have governed workplace organizing since the 1930s simply disappear? Historian Leigh Campbell-Hale joins Labor Exchange host Robert Lindgren to discuss the 1927 Columbine Mine Strike, the stories labor history remembers—and forgets—and why those narratives matter for workers today. Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com Labor

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29:30

They’ll Never Keep Us Down

Labor History Today ·

2026/05/24

This week on Labor History Today: Hazel Dickens remembered. The Mine Wars Forum talks with Hazel’s nephew Buddy Dickens about the legendary labor singer’s deep roots in the West Virginia coalfields, her fierce commitment to miners and working people, and why her music still resonates today. From picket lines and black lung fights to the new Fly Away Home festival honoring her legacy, Buddy shares personal stories about one of labor’s most beloved voices. Plus: Labor History in 2:00 on the 1946 coal

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