Unions and Democracy: Theda Skocpol

November 16, 2023

November 16th, 2023

”Unions used to be one of a whole series of interlocking organizations that workers and their families participated in, not just at work.”

Theda Skocpol is the Victor S. Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University and co-author of Rust Belt Union Blues: Why Working-Class Voters are Turning Away from the Democratic Party. We learn how unions are true laboratories of democracy and why their demise has eroded our democratic culture.

Unions were at the heart of local communities well beyond bargaining for contracts. They were part of recreational and social life, and even the churches were aligned with unions. There was a sense of solidarity for fellow union members, pride in their work, and a natural alignment on politics. If elections are about voting for who is on your side, then politics is partly about who we are — and who they are. American democracy is at an inflection point and the question is whether the news who are engaged are willing to practice and defend democracy.

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Learn More About Theda:

https://scholar.harvard.edu/thedaskocpol/home

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