The Industrial Worker, "the voice of revolutionary industrial unionism," is the newspaper of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). It is currently released ten times a year, printed and edited by union labor, and is frequently distributed at radical bookstores, demonstrations, strikes and labor rallies. It contains news relevant to the radical left, such as information on communist economics, industrial conditions, strikes, direct action against employers, labor history, and general labor issues.
The newspaper was first printed in journal format in Joliet, Illinois, beginning in January 1906, incorporating "The Voice of Labor," the newspaper from the former American Labor Union which had joined the IWW, and "International Metal Worker." It was edited by A. S. Edwards, and early contributors include Eugene V. Debs, Jack London, Daniel DeLeon, Bill Haywood, and J. H. Walsh, along with poetry by Covington Hall. When the group led by ousted President Charles Sherman retained physical control over the paper after the union's 1906 Convention, and continued publication under that name for a few months (before giving up the ghost), the IWW instead issued the Industrial Union Bulletin for several years. A.S. Edwards was elected editor of the Bulletin in 1906. The second series of the Industrial Worker commenced in 1909 in Spokane, Washington, and has continued to this day, with only one major interruption, during the period of 1913-1916. In the early years, it was printed weekly and mainly circulated west of the Mississippi, while the IWW's "Official Eastern Organ" was Solidarity published in New Castle, Pennsylvania and later, Cleveland, which continued until it merged with the Industrial Worker in Chicago in the 1930s.
The Spokane paper was the birthplace of the comic strip character Mr. Block, later commemorated in a Joe Hill song. The Industrial Worker usually ran four pages, with an annual eight page May Day issue reflecting on gains of the labor movement in the previous year. Circulation fell off due to the repression of the IWW during and after the First World War, reflecting a decline in the influence of radical unionism more generally.
Long-time Industrial Worker editor Jon Bekken stepped down in 2006, followed by Peter Moore between 2006 and 2008. Diane Krauthamer is the current editor.
Issues of the Industrial Worker are often available on microfilm at university libraries and other research oriented facilities, and they contain a wealth of information on world view of the wobblies over the past century.
Famous quotes containing the words industrial and/or worker:
“The two most far-reaching critical theories at the beginning of the latest phase of industrial society were those of Marx and Freud. Marx showed the moving powers and the conflicts in the social-historical process. Freud aimed at the critical uncovering of the inner conflicts. Both worked for the liberation of man, even though Marx’s concept was more comprehensive and less time-bound than Freud’s.”
—Erich Fromm (1900–1980)
“Photography suits the temper of this age—of active bodies and minds. It is a perfect medium for one whose mind is teeming with ideas, imagery, for a prolific worker who would be slowed down by painting or sculpting, for one who sees quickly and acts decisively, accurately.”
—Edward Weston (1886–1958)