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Learn Labor History

Members of unions affiliated with the AFL-CIO meet at 1408 Washington every Third Thursday. During this vital election season, they put a lot of effort into informing their members and entreating them to vote. But they are never too busy to remind members that labor history is important. Most of what we learn in school is actually the boss's history. The important contributions of ordinary working people are passed by in a version of the past that only includes rich people and their influential politicians.

Making our own history available to us has been a lifelong project for Dr. George Green of University of Texas at Arlington. He has helped accumulate one of the largest collections of labor materials in the Southwest. It is available on the 5th floor of the college library. Green brought the library's new archivist, Claire Galloway, pictured at left, and a graduate student/activist, Max Krochmal. to the Dallas AFL-CIO meeting on October 16. They were, as always, greatly appreciated!

Green reminded the unionists that their contributions to the library collection are extremely important. He needs records of union activities. He especially tries to get recorded interviews with older union members, because much of our history is an oral one.

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