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Solidarity Forever

The History of American Labor


Latest episode

  • 9. The Ten-Hour Day

    20:09
    The ten-hour day, "six to six" with an hour for breakfast and an hour for supper, was the key fight of the late 1830s. Championed by the National Trades Union and the mill-girls of Lowell, the movement for a ten hour day would win some, and lose some, until it all came to a head in 1840.

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  • 8. There is Power in a Union

    19:02
    In our first How To episode, we're starting at the beginning, with labor theory 101. Who is your boss? What's capital? And how does the night shift who always forgets to put away the cleaning supplies fit into all this?Find out here, how there is power in a union.
  • 7. Lowell II

    21:37
    Every good sequel should be bigger, louder, and thrilling-er than the first one, right?
  • 6. New Jersey Feelings

    35:01
    Why did Lowell girls get accused of having New Jersey feelings? Today, we find out!(PROTIP: It's not New Jersey)
  • 5. Regularly Discharged Forever

    46:04
    Lowell, Massachussetts, was the Google Campus of the 1800s. So what went wrong to cause all those pretty, loyal mill girls to strike?
  • 4. Throwing a Working Man's Party

    35:40
    Labor action is effectively one of two things: political action, or direct action. This week, we learn about political action, in the courts through the landmark Pullis decision, and charting the rise and fall of the Working Man's Parties in the days of Andy Jackson.
  • 3. The Exceptional Americans

    27:19
    What made American labor so unique, and American labor history so bloody? Today, we dive into what made the Americans exceptional.