Click the link below to find out more about the plans for celebrating Labor Day in the historic Pullman neighborhood in Chicago. Tom Shepherd of the Pullman Civic Organization talks about the historical importance of the Pullman neighborhood including the 1894 Pullman strike in which important figures in U.S. labor history make their first major appearance on the public scene, including Eugene V. Debs, A. Philip Randolph, Jane Addams, and Clarence Darrow. The celebration is sponsored by Pullman Civic Organization, Illinois Labor History Society, Bronzeville/Chicago Black History Society, Illinois AFL/CIO, Calumet Heritage Partnership, Historic Pullman Foundation, Chicago Metro History Project, Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, The State of Illinois Historic Site at Pullman, A. Phillip Randolph Institute, and more… http://www.archive.org/details/Plans_for_Pullman_LaborDay_08

The Illinois Labor History Society, the Pullman Civic Association, and other allied groups have planned the perfect venue for celebrating Labor Day 2008 - the historic Pullman neighborhood, home of the George Pullman's "model" workers planned community and the 1894 Pullman strike, one of the most important events in the history of the U.S. labor movement. To find out more about the events planned for Sept. 1st, check out this website... http://laborday.pullmanevents.info/

Let me start by saying that I never have been a sports fan and likely never will be. For whatever reason sports just never attracted me as a kid and unless you develop such an interest in childhood, I think it unlikely that you will take an interest later in life. It’s not because I lacked the aptitude for sports. I spent much of my youth on swim teams and running cross country. I would often start a season as one of the better athletes on the team; but by mid season my lack of interest and lack of willingness to put in much effort to the sport would usually mean I would fall to the back of the pack. I also played nearly every team sport except football at some point in my youth because my father’s firm belief that playing sports was good for you. I was less convinced. I think I generally rejected the whole idea that competition should be valued and I preferred the life of the mind rather than the world of the body. Asian martial arts were the only physical activity that interested me ...

Hi All, Well I am back from my annual Summer travel abroad, and as has been the case for the past several years, Mexico was my primary destination. First off let me apologize to readers of pilsenprole for being very slow to update the blog over the past few months. Now that I have returned from my Summer break, one of my goals for the new year (I always think in terms of the School year rather than the calendar year) is to be more consistent with regular updates. Check back weekly and I will endeavor to have new material for you to read and respond to. AND RESPOND IS KEY!!! I talk to people fairly often who tell me the read this blog but NEVER RESPOND ONLINE! Please do. It helps to know who is reading this stuff and I crave your feed back. It was an interesting time to be in Mexico. As gas prices have become the number one concern of many working class people in the U.S., the possible privatization of Mexico’s state oil monopoly PEMEX is the main topic of political discussion in that c...

Cynthia McKinney became the first black woman ever to be nominated for the office of the President of the United States by a major political party at this weekend’s Green Party National Convention in Chicago. She also named her vice presidential pick at the convention, Rosa Clemente, a Puerto Rican political activist from the Bronx, with a high profile among politically active urban youth as one of the founders of the National Hip Hop Political Convention. You can hear her acceptance speech here... http://www.archive.org/details/CynthiaMckinneyAcceptanceSpeech

Ed McElroy – Out going president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) - gave a state of the union address at the opening of the AFT convention Friday. He starts the speech by acknowledging that Chicago was the birth place of the AFT in 1916. The Chicago Teachers Union is AFT Local 1. His speech focuses on the tremendous growth of the AFT at a time when most unions are shrinking. The AFT is the second largest union in the AFL-CIO, after AFSCME. He also discusses the union’s opposition to No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the importance the union places on electing Barack Obama this fall. You can hear the full speech (minus some thank yous to family, friends and collegues at the begining) here... http://www.archive.org/details/EdMcelroyAtAftConvention2008

Part 2 of my interview with Labor Notes repoorter Mark Brenner on the 2008 SEIU Convention will air on tonight's episode of Labor Express Radio. For part 1, go here... http://www.archive.org/details/LE6-15-08