The Political Economy of Early Southern Unionism: Race, Politics, and Labor in the South, 1880–1953

Gerald Friedman

The Journal of Economic History, 2000, vol. 60, issue 2, 384-413

Abstract: Southern unions were the weak link in the American labor movement, organizing a smaller share of the labor force than did unions in the northern states or in Europe. Structural conditions, including a racially divided rural population, obstructed southern unionization. The South's distinctive political system also blocked unionization. A strict racial code compelling whites to support the Democratic Party and the disfranchisement of southern blacks and many working-class whites combined to create a one-party political system that allowed southern politicians to ignore labor's demands. Unconstrained by working-class voters, southern politicians facilitated strikebreaking and favored employers against unions.

Date: 2000
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