Celebrating labor leaders during Black History Month

UFCW Local 227 is celebrating Black History Month by honoring those who fought to make our union movement better throughout our history and how their work continues to make life better for black workers today. 

You have probably learned about the many contributions Frederick Douglas, a well known abolitionist and civil rights leader, has made to our country. But did you know Douglas was also an early union leader? In 1872, he was elected the president of the “Colored” National Labor Union and edited The New National Era, a publication that became the union’s official newspaper. The “Colored” National Labor Union was one of the most important precursors to labor rights activism for black workers in America.

While many of us learned about Frederick Douglas, only a few of us will recognize the name Lucy Parsons. Sometimes known as “The Firebrand,” Parsons was an influential black woman in the labor movement. An effective community organizer, she was known for her pro-labor writings and speeches. She is credited with having organized and led the first May Day celebration in Chicago on May 1st 1886, as well as having been one of the founders of the Industrial Workers of the World in 1905, an influential “general labor union” that paved the way for many modern day labor unions.

Throughout our history, important figures in the fight for civil rights have also been important figures in the fight for workers’ rights. A. Philip Randolph was a staunch believer in collective action and the power of unions to bring people together to fight for a common cause. He was the leader of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first Black-led labor organization to receive a “charter” from the AFL (American Federation of Labor). This means that they were officially recognized by essentially the federation of all unions.

As an AFL Vice President, A. Philip Randolph was instrumental in lobbying for black workers’ rights and pushing President Truman to issue Executive Order 8802, which banned segregation in defense industries in the midst of WWII. He helped to organize the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous I Have A Dream speech.  

Throughout the civil rights movement, the AFL and labor unions were involved in many different ways; this includes mobilizing folks for the March of Washington for Jobs and Freedom, as well as, offering critical testimony and lobbying support to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 

Today, Black workers are more likely than workers of any other race to be a union member. Black union members hourly wages are - on average - 14.7% higher than non-union black workers. They are also 17.4% more likely to have employer-sponsored health insurance and 18.3% more likely to have an employer sponsored retirement plan. 

Walking in the footsteps of Frederick Douglas, Lucy Parson and A. Philip Randolph, labor leaders today continue to call for broad and sustained attention to addressing racism and sexism where they continue to violate labor’s democratic ideals.