On the Line with Daisy Pitkin

In this special bonus episode, I interview Daisy Pitkin, author of On the Line: A Story of Class, Solidarity, and Two Women's Epic Fight to Build a Union, which chronicles the story of a "bold five-year campaign to bring a union to the dangerous industrial laundry factories of Phoenix, Arizona." Throughout the book, Pitkin interrogates how unions are formed, the role of staff in organizing a union, and, moreover, how we tell our stories in the labor movement. You can pick her book up in your local independent bookstore and find her @daisypitkin Thank you for listening. To support the show, please go to https://www.enmassepodcast.com/donate 

In this special, bonus episode, I interview Professor Robert Ovetz, author of "Workers' Inquiry and Global Class Struggle." Prepare to have any preconceived notions of unions, power, and class conflict challenged and expanded!  Report your strike threats at strikethreats.org This is an independently produced show. Please consider supporting En Masse on Patreon.

“The entire history of this country can be understood as a long and arduous struggle to count the votes, and indeed the lives, of working people, women, people of color, immigrants, and native peoples.” - Andrew Tripp, union organizer. Hear more from speakers, representing VPIRG, Rights and Democracy, and the VT AFL-CIO during a “Protect the Results” vigil in front of Vermont’s State House on November 4th. Best of all, hear from Plainfield singer and artist, Heidi Ann Wilson, as she leads us through songs of remembrance and hope. Recording courtesy of Carl Etnier, host of Relocalizing Vermont. Photo courtesy of sister Daphne Kinney-Landis. Stay strong and stay vigilant. Find “Protect the Results” events near you: https://protecttheresults.com/

In Part Two, Dylan Kelley, friend of the pod and local journalist, and I dive into the hard history embodied in the story of John Henry while exploring the remains of Barre’s railyard. John Henry’s ghost still haunts us, calling us to acknowledge the violence of our past and fight for justice. The revolutionary history and spirit so clearly embodied in the version we feature as our theme song in Season 1 shows us how. We thought the story of John Henry and Eric George’s performance were so important and incredible, that we are making them available to all of our listeners. However, we will continue producing exclusive content for our Patreon members to show our thanks for being a member of our En Masse community. If you haven’t become a member yet, please consider doing so. Go to patreon.com/enmasse

In Part 1, we hear a live performance of “John Henry” by Eric George, a Vermont-based songwriter, sound engineer, and performer of original music and poetry. Eric also shares his relationship to the song and the repertoire of folk music more generally. We also discuss the role of music and culture in shaping a personal narrative, social consciousness and social movements. Last, we get to hear Eric perform an original song off his album, “Songs of Resistance.” We thought the story of John Henry and Eric George’s performance were so important and incredible, that we are making them available to all of our listeners. However, we will continue producing exclusive content for our Patreon members to show our thanks for being a member of our En Masse community. If you haven’t become a member yet, please consider doing so. Go to patreon.com/enmasse

Hear the full, 53-minute BONUS episode by becoming a Patreon member today: Support En Masse on Patreon. So you’ve finished Season 1 of En Masse. Maybe you’ve noticed En Masse is a bit different than other podcasts you’ve heard. The interviews are not quite interviews; they’re oral histories. And the oral histories are performed by different narrators. Liz Medina and Dylan Kelley take you behind the scenes to share our process and give some tips in doing your own oral history project! Please excuse the decrease in audio quality! We are trying to find creative ways to keep on going with only our smartphones during the pandemic.

Hear the full, one-hour BONUS episode by becoming a Patreon member today: Support En Masse on Patreon. There’s a huge pile of rocks near each quarry pit. Large enough to make a person stop their car to look, or for the neighborhood kids to get scraped and bruised to claim kingship over them. They are made of granite waste rock -- the bits and pieces considered invaluable and left behind. In the field of oral history, all stories are valuable. Oral historians care about people not profit. No stone is left unturned. In this bonus episode, we present to you fragments of working life in Barre, Vermont from the rest of Liz Medina’s Barre Oral History Project (2017).  MUSIC CREDITS: "Amber Haze" by Daniel Birch "Sun comes up, I come down" by Silicon Transmitter

Those of you who’ve made it to the end of Season 1 may be wondering, “What’s next? When will Season 2 come out?” Please consider supporting En Masse on Patreon. MUSIC CREDITS "Call me" by Daniel Birch. From Free Music Archive. CC BY "Recalling" by Blear Moon. From Free Music Archive. CC BY-NC

Denise is one of the few women working in what remains of Barre’s granite industry. She worked as a sandblaster for many years. A lot of experienced workers like her are leaving the industry...and the younger generations are not coming in to take their place. Her workplace now has a CNC machine; it can carve a memorial all on its own. She manages paperwork now as an expediter, but she misses the sandblasting room. As president of her trade union, the Granite Cutters Association, she would like to see more people get into the good union jobs available in the granite industry and join the labor movement. Oral history transcript to be performed: Denise Guilmette, Granite Expediter, former Sandblaster (2017, original) Guest performer: Sharon (Skye) Forest This is an independently produced show. Please consider supporting En Masse on Patreon.

Randy has worked his way up from driving a milk truck to working for the City of Barre. He has worked in both the Water Department and the Cemetery Department. The Cemetery Department covers Hope Cemetery in Barre, which is home to some of Barre’s finest granite memorials. Despite Barre’s multicultural past, some tension arose in the Cemetery Department when the cemetery held a Muslim funeral. Randy’s back in the Water Department, nearing retirement, but, not all is fine and placid: Providing essential services and being a union leader is always hard work. Oral history transcript to be performed: Randy Edmunds, Work Leader for City of Barre’s Water Department and President of AFSCME Council 93 (2017, original) Guest performer: Carl Etnier This is an independently produced show. Please consider supporting En Masse on Patreon.