‘Brothers on the Line’ Portrays Visionary Reuther Brothers
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Producers expect to wrap up production next month for the movie “Brothers on the Line,” a provocative documentary exploring the lives of the Reuther brothers—Walter, Roy and Victor. Their vision and strong commitment to civil rights and workers’ rights led a generation of workers into a struggle for economic and social justice.
The film, which was written, produced and directed by Sasha Reuther (see video), the grandson of Victor Reuther, opens in the 1930s when the three brothers overcame intimidation and violence to organize successful sit-down strikes.
As UAW president for three decades, Walter Reuther, with advice from his brothers on community, political and international affairs, forged a strong coalition of activists, politicians and union members to fight for equality and justice.
Reuther Brothers Film Gets World Premiere at Moore’s Traverse City Film Festival
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We’re looking forward to the release later this year of the documentary “Brothers On The Line,” which chronicles the lives of UAW leader Walter Reuther and his brothers, Roy and Victor—from the Great Depression to the Great Society.
But this month, activist moviemaker Michael Moore will give audiences at his annual Traverse City Film Festival (July 26-31) a sneak preview when the film’s writer, producer and director, Sasha Reuther, screens his work in progress. Sasha is Victor Reuther’s grandson.
Reuther says he sent a rough cut of the film to Moore who then invited him to screen it at the festival where Moore will be paying special tribute to unions.
“Brothers On the Line” follows the Reuthers from the 1930’s bloody battles with auto company thugs, sit-down strikes to the establishment of the UAW as one of the most influential unions and through their fight for equality and civil rights. According to the film’s website:
Union and Progressive Activists Join Forces at Netroots Nation
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Netroots Nation, the annual conference for online activists, is on next week, June 16-19, in Minneapolis. The union movement has a big presence there, as we seek to work more closely with our progressive allies in the netroots community. Here are some highlights:
• AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler is taking part in a June 17 lunch panel to talk about breaking down economic barriers that keep many Americans from moving ahead, especially young people, women and communities of color. She is joined by communications consultant Anat Shenker-Osorio and hip-hop artist Rha Goddess.
• Minnesota local labor and progressive activists will showcase how they created strong coalitions to elect a Democratic governor in 2010 and move key progressive priorities, including Tax the Rich legislation. ”Working Together: How Coalition Campaigns Saved the Day in Minnesota,” The panel offers a spot of sun in this ugly state legislation session and an opportunity to meet local activists.
• A group of stellar bloggers are joining on a panel, “Countering Hate Speak that Villainizes Workers and Unions,” and offer suggestions for proactive strategies to build a new understanding of unions and collective power. Panelists are Read the rest of this entry »
Pioneering UAW Sit-Down Striker: Never Scared, Despite Tear Gas and Guns
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When AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka spoke recently at the UAW’s 75th annual convention, he paid tribute to many UAW pioneers—members like Ermon Harp, a tiny woman from Milburn, Ky.
In his speech to the UAW convention in Detroit in June, Trumka said:
“When the auto companies wouldn’t recognize your union, you sat down in the factories.”
Trumka’s speech reminded me of Harp, her strong support of workers’ rights and unions and her place in union history. I had the opportunity to interview Harp before she died at the age of 97 in 1992.
In 1922, she and her husband, Lube Harp, moved to the Motor City from Milburn, near Mayfield. They were looking for work, not a place in labor history. She found both.
Young Workers: Hit Hard, Hitting Back
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As the newly elected secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, I traveled the country this fall, talking with workers and hearing their concerns. The economic crisis is causing a lot of pain. So many people have no jobs, no health care—and many are losing their homes. And as I looked into the faces of young workers, the reality hit home that these young people are part of the first generation in recent history likely to be worse off than their parents.
This is a tragedy.
The AFL-CIO and our community affiliate, Working America, recently surveyed young workers—and I’m not talking about 17- and 18-year-olds. I’m talking about 18- to 34-year-olds. In the past 10 years, young workers have suffered disproportionately from the downturn in the economy:
- One in three young workers is worried about being able to find a job—let alone a full-time job with benefits.
- Only 31 percent make enough money to cover their bills and put some aside—that is 22 percentage points worse than it was 10 years ago.
- Nearly half worry about having more debt than they can handle.
- One in three still lives at home with parents.
Henderson Tells Convention: Employee Choice Is Civil Rights Issue
As the AFL-CIO Convention prepared to vote on Resolution 1 on organizing, Wade Henderson, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), told the delegates that the freedom to form unions is a civil rights issue.
He called for Congress to pass the Employee Free Choice Act and pledged that the civil rights community will work “shoulder to shoulder” with workers to pass the bill.
Union participation can begin to lift the dead weight of decades of discrimination. For African Americans, women and Latinos the best way to build a better life is to join together with others to form a union.
