Black Workers
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C. L. Dellums African American Union Leadership School
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On September 8, 2003, Bill Fletcher Jr., president of TransAfrica Forum and a former education
director of the AFL-CIO, shared with Bay Area unionists his analysis of a crisis facing Black
America, as well as ideas on how to better organize Black workers.
At the event, held at the SEIU 250 Hall in downtown Oakland, Fletcher spoke to some 80
unionists and members of community organizations. He began his speech by linking the disappearance
of the Black middle class in the 1980s to the loss of union jobs, and thereby provided a
more nuanced analysis than the standard narrative.
“The popular story goes like this: ‘The Black middle class deserted the city
and left the Black underclass in the city. The Black middle class went to the suburbs and
were basically taking care of themselves. As a result of the desertion of the Black middle
class, the Black communities are falling apart.’ You’ve heard that, right? Let’s
understand what is actually going on.”
The leader of TransAfrica Forum, a Washington D.C.-based non-profit group addressing problems
facing Africa and people of African descent in the Caribbean and Latin America, stressed
that a major though rarely recognized factor in the disappearance of the Black middle class
was the fact that many of them, who were unionized working-class members, actually lost
their jobs.
“The Black working class that was unionized was able, as a result of unionization,
to attain a decent living standard, often buying homes, sending their kids to school and
creating a level of stability in the community,” Fletcher said.
“The disappearance of these jobs created a crisis within Black America,” he
said, referring to union-backed decent-paying jobs at such workplaces as steelworks, auto
plants and shipyards. “This had a disproportionate impact on Black America.”
As a way to fix some of the current problems facing Black workers, Fletcher suggested that
Black union members take stronger leadership roles and hold some of the key staff positions
in unions. He also suggested that more Black labor leaders be elected in union offices.
However, Fletcher asserted that the issue of union transformation and leadership is more
complex than simply achieving more Blacks in certain positions. “A lot of what we
(Black labor activists) have done has been a very courageous struggle around representation
in the unions and sometimes around connecting through the civil rights struggle, particularly
from the 1950s to the mid-1970s,” he said. “In the 21st century, that isn’t
enough. And it isn’t enough for us to ask white people to act better. What we have
to be really looking at is taking the lead and taking power.”
Fletcher, who himself is a longtime labor activist, added, “It’s not simply
about Black representation in this union or that, but it’s about how we want unions
to act. And it is only going to happen if we are prepared to take over. I don’t mean
just Black folks. I am talking about the people with the right ideas.”
Following the modern civil rights movement, the African American working class has been
sharply divided into two different strata: a group of relatively well-paid workers, many
of whom are working in public offices; and another group of workers taking low-paid jobs
in such industries as security. Black labor leaders point out that many of those low-paid
Black workers are not in unions.
As a way to reach out to non-union Black workers, Fletcher advised that Black union leaders,
especially in the South, form coalitions with African American churches as well as Latino
labor organizations.
Fletcher said that a combination of irrational fears causes the persistent underrepresentation
in unions of Black workers. These include the fear on the part of Black workers of “taking
up racism and racial discrimination in the working place” and the fear on the part
of White people that “the Blacks can somehow get out of control and rip things up,”
Fletcher said.
Fletcher also suggested that Black leaders “speak up and play up our heroes and heroines”
of the post-World War II Black labor activism through Black publications in an attempt to
attract more young Black workers to union activities.
Following Fletcher’s talk, he and audience members engaged in a vigorous Q&A
discussion. The discussion illustrated a strong desire among members of unions and community
organizations to talk about and develop projects to improve the conditions facing Black
workers.
This forum was part of a larger UC-Berkeley Labor Center project to increase the quality
and quantity of Black worker organizing.
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