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We're very excited to be launching a new, wide ranging series on the history of allegations levied against unions of corruption and relations with organized crime. Ever since the formation of the first labor unions, the capitalists and their media have been denouncing organized labor as corrupt, violent, led by racketeers, and in bed with the mob. This allegation remains common today, and what better way to help fight these ideological attacks on unions than by confronting these allegations head on and examining the historical record. And of course, there's no other place we could start than with the case of Jimmy Hoffa, whose reputation looms large as one of the most notorious figures in US labor history. To rigorously examine his case, we will have to go all the way back to the founding of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and follow allegations of corruption from the early days of the union up through today.
In this episode, we discuss how the ruling class attacked unions for supposedly being corrupt from the very beginning, and used the media to minimize violence by bosses and amplify stories of violence by workers. In future episodes we will go through a century of Teamster history, the rise of Jimmy Hoffa, his presidency of the union and his fight with the Kennedys, his imprisonment, his disappearance, and ultimately his legacy. Along the way we will do our best to separate real instances of corruption from the mountain of insinuations and rumor, and discuss what lessons we can learn for our organizing today.
Overtime Episode 24 PREVIEW - Rank and File Rebellions of the 1970s Pt 2
Ep 131 - Inflation is Class Warfare
Overtime Episode 23 PREVIEW - Rank and File Rebellions of the 1970s Pt 1
Ep 130 – There Are No Illegal Strikes, Just Unsuccessful Ones
UNLOCKED - Royal Mail Strike Interview
Movie Time 3 PREVIEW - The Organizer and Western Ghats
Ep 129 – End Slavery, End the Empire
PREVIEW: Royal Mail Strike Interview
Ep 128 – Protect the Right to Strike!
Overtime Episode 22 PREVIEW - Weavers of Revolution Pt 2
Ep 127 – Child Labor is a Crime Against Humanity
Overtime Episode 21 PREVIEW - Weavers of Revolution Pt 1
Ep 126 - Workplace Safety is Non-Negotiable
PREVIEW: Health Communism: An Interview with Death Panel
Ep 125 – Prison Abolition Is Not a Metaphor
Movie Time 2 PREVIEW – Sorry We Missed You and Pride
UNLOCKED - Starbucks Workers United Oklahoma City Interview
Ep 124 – We All Need A Living Wage
PREVIEW - Starbucks Workers United Oklahoma City Interview
Ep 123 – It’s Not Over Until the Workers Vote
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