Podcast Summary:

New Books Network – Naomi R. Williams, "A Blueprint for Worker Solidarity: Class Politics and Community in Wisconsin" (U Illinois Press, 2025)
Host: Tom Disena
Date: October 12, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode features a conversation between host Tom Disena and Naomi R. Williams about her new book, A Blueprint for Worker Solidarity: Class Politics and Community in Wisconsin. Williams, an Associate Professor of Labor Studies and Employment Relations at Rutgers University, delves into the unique history of Racine, Wisconsin—a city where the working-class community maintained solidary and activism across generations, defying broad trends of labor decline during and after deindustrialization. The discussion explores how race, gender, and class intersected in Racine's labor movement, and offers insights into building effective worker solidarity for today’s organizing environments.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal and Scholarly Roots in Labor History (03:04–04:27)

• Williams' Motivation: Williams’ interest in labor history stemmed from a disconnect between historical narratives and her experiences growing up in the South, where multiracial alliances and collective action shaped communities.
  • Quote [03:17]: “What I saw in my community was people working together to make things better for each other. And there were multiracial alliances... It just seemed like the stories I was getting about that same time period in my history books talked about divisions and identity politics and the things that divided folks.”

2. Racine’s Uniqueness & Labor Activism (04:43–08:01)

• Diverse Industrial Base: Unlike other Midwest cities, Racine’s industry was not dominated by a single company. Multiple sectors—auto parts, garments, brewing, public and private sector office work—involved diverse workers, including women.
• Generational Continuity: Family ties to union jobs created a culture of continuity and solidarity, bolstered by an influential labor newspaper that chronicled local events for 40+ years.
• Inclusive Solidarity: A broad sense of who “belonged” in the working class led to unexpected alliances, such as UAW workers marching with predominantly Black and Latina women hospital workers.
  • Quote [04:55]: "Through the research, I came to understand that they had a broad understanding of who belonged in the working class. And they showed up for folks in a lot of different... unexpected places."

3. William "Blue" Jenkins and Cross-Racial Labor Leadership (09:19–14:33)

• Biography of Jenkins: Jenkins, a Black worker whose family moved to Racine in the early 1900s, grew into a labor leader by advocating for other workers, regardless of race or job status.
• Strategic Integration: Jenkins and allies pushed unions to support NAACP efforts and brought unions into civil rights coalitions, making racial justice integral to economic democracy.
  • Quote [13:20]: “He actually got unions to join as organizational members [of the NAACP]. They built... an idea that it was important to support racial justice in order to have economic democracy.”

4. Struggle and Expansion in the 1950s (15:06–19:37)

• Constant Labor Struggle: In the 1950s, workers regularly clashed with management at the city’s largest employer—J.I. Case Company. Despite the “Treaty of Detroit” settling labor issues elsewhere, Racine’s unions continually struck for basic rights.
• Civic Engagement: Labor’s activism extended to politics—electing a labor-friendly mayor, serving on city councils, and joining boards of charitable organizations.
  • Quote [16:15]: “They ran candidates for the city's common council... They were really wrestling control from the business leaders who had maintained all these power positions in the city... working people as full citizens.”

5. Concept of ‘Total Person Unionism’ (20:46–24:13)

• Beyond the Workplace: Workers believed their unions should engage with all aspects of members’ lives—housing, education, community organizations—echoing a sense of social responsibility rooted in memories of Depression-era hardship.
  • Quote [20:53]: "What a worker was doing at work was only a part of their life experience. Like, they needed shelter, right. They needed to feel safe at home."
• Generational Organizing: Retired unionists stayed involved in community issues, reinforcing a culture of activism and collective memory.

6. Ongoing Struggles with Race, Housing, and Inclusion (24:13–31:40)

• Housing Discrimination: Even prominent Black leaders like Jenkins faced housing discrimination, and a decades-long campaign for fair housing in Racine only partially succeeded.
• Barriers Persisted: Despite organizing victories, Black and Latino workers continued to struggle for access to union jobs, fair housing, and full civic participation.
  • Quote [24:37]: "Someone as locally famous as William Jenkins was, couldn't buy a home in the neighborhood that he wanted to."
• Active Intersectionality: Labor-media collaborations exposed poor housing conditions; unions collaborated with civil rights groups on issues like teacher housing and employment discrimination.

7. Impact of Suburbanization and Space on Solidarity (31:40–34:50)

• Suburban Flight: Postwar suburbanization reshaped community life, fiscal priorities, and deepened inequalities as white, unionized families moved to suburbs, draining city resources.
  • Passage Read Aloud [30:47–31:40]: "[Suburbanization] reshaped the political alignment of urban areas and affected local decision making. As white middle class families moved outside the city... older city services and public works projects [were left] without the needed funds..."
• Gathering Spaces: Structures like the Racine Labor Center served as essential hubs, sustaining solidarity through physical proximity and shared activities.

8. Deindustrialization’s Toll and Response (34:50–39:37)

• Job & Population Loss: Racine lost thousands of residents in the 1980s as manufacturing jobs disappeared, with Black workers hit especially hard.
• Social Fallout: Substance abuse spiked, and efforts were made to support struggling families, retrain workers, and maintain communal ties even as collective institutions—like the labor newspaper—collapsed.
  • Quote [39:41]: “We might not have unions, but this is still a union town.”

9. Blueprint for Worker Solidarity—Lessons for Today (40:09–44:22)

• Holistic Organizing: Williams urges organizers to address the full spectrum of workers' lives—not just workplace issues, but also safety, housing, and democratic participation.
  • Quote [40:09]: “You can't just focus on what's happening at work... We are, you know, workers are being attacked from every angle. And we have to recognize that we're whole people and what's happening at home, people's ability to get to work safely... all of our fights are connected.”
• Community as Strategy: Broad-based, cross-sector organizing and persistent storytelling about labor’s victories fostered lasting resilience and identity.
• Expanding Solidarity: Cross-occupation solidarity—teachers, service workers, social workers, and industrial workers supporting each other—was essential in adapting to economic changes.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Naomi R. Williams [04:43]: "There was a lot of different types of industries... they were organized across different sectors—public and private office workers. There were active women in the labor movement in the area."
• On Jenkins’ Philosophy [09:37]: "He understood the importance of union solidarity and not breaking a picket line... union jobs were the path to economic democracy at work and even to political democracy in the United States."
• On Community [24:37]: "It sounds like a beautiful story, and it is. For me, so many of the people who did this work are heroes, and it really is a blueprint for something that we can do right now, today. But it wasn't perfect."
• On Contemporary Organizing [40:09]: “We have to recognize that we're whole people and what's happening at home, people's ability to get to work safely... all of our fights are connected and... democracy requires all of us, in all parts of us.”
• On Remaining a ‘Union Town’ [39:41]: “We might not have unions, but this is still a union town.”

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment Description | |-----------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:17 | Williams explains personal motivation for studying labor movements | | 04:43 | Discussion of Racine’s diverse workforce and inclusive labor culture | | 09:37 | William "Blue" Jenkins as a labor leader and his cross-racial organizing | | 13:20 | Integrating unions with the local NAACP and civil rights activism | | 15:06 | The contentious 1950s and ongoing labor struggle at J.I. Case Co. | | 20:53 | Concept of ‘total person unionism’ and labor’s role beyond the workplace | | 24:37 | Housing discrimination and struggles for fair housing in Racine | | 30:47-31:40| Passage from the book on suburbanization’s impact | | 33:07 | The role of the Racine Labor Center as a solidarity hub | | 34:50 | Deindustrialization in the 1980s and its social impact | | 39:41 | “We might not have unions, but this is still a union town.” | | 40:09 | Lessons for future organizing and holistic approach to worker solidarity | | 41:58 | Examples of cross-sector solidarity—social workers, teachers, industrial unions|

Conclusion and Author’s Current Work

• Future Projects: Williams is developing a workers’ oral history archive in New Jersey, focusing on logistics workers’ stories to enrich understanding of community-building across new sectors.
  • Quote [43:40]: “I think oral history and local history is really important because it adds nuance... to our understanding of what it's like to build across communities.”

For listeners and readers alike, Williams’s work offers a vivid and practical account of how labor solidarity can transcend lines of race, gender, occupation, and time—providing resonant lessons for today’s organizers.