In this new edition of his classic study of the Wobblies, Patrick Renshaw tells the story of how they planned to combine the American working class, and eventually wage earners all over the world, into one big labor union with an industrial basis, a syndicalist philosophy, and a revolutionary aim. A careful, balanced work. New York Times Book Review. A lively introduction to a trying and violent period in American industrial history. Journal of American History. The story of American trade unionism is a sorry one dirty and tragic and this is one of the worst chapters. Times Literary Supplement.
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Background Information
The Industrial Workers of America, also known as the Wobblies, strove to create one big union for all workers. The American labor movement began tentatively during the Industrial Revolution and reached maturity during the New Deal with the support of and for FDR.