Recomposition's blog

If the first week of work at Artistry Bakery and Cafe was any indication, there was no way this four-month experience should ever have resulted in two of the strongest friendships in my life. I was introduced on the first day to a group of men and women, mostly about University age, who were also going to be working with me at the restaurant.

This article is an account of my experiences as a “pink collar” militant working at an immigrant-serving non-profit organization (NPO)1

• 1. NOTE: In much of the academic literature surrounding the non-profit industry, the terms NPO (non-profit organization) and NGO (non-governmental organization) are used interchangeably.

“Those who make revolution halfway only dig their own graves”

– Jacobin leader in the French Revolution, eventually put to death by Robespierre

Oftentimes as workplace organizers, we have a difficult time admitting our mistakes. We are driven and strong-willed, and though these attributes often aid us in the struggle, they can also hold us back from self-reflection and acknowledgment of our flaws. As Wobblies, how do we cope with the realization that our entire campaign was perhaps a mistake from the start?

Much of the content of the Industrial Worker, as well as the Organizer Training 101, discuss the nuts and bolts of workplace struggle including how to conduct a successful 1-on-1 and form a workplace committee. What is often left unspoken is the path by which Wobblies go from the unemployment line to worker-organizers fully engaged in the social fabric of their job site.

This is a story about anger, “non-profits,” and pissing blood. I was in my fifth year working at an independent health food store run by religious fanatics in a suburb outside of the city and I needed more money. I started off part-time at a cultural center, working the events.

In October you should get a copy of a new pamphlet called Fighting for ourselves: anarcho-syndicalism and the class struggle by the UK revolutionary organization Solidarity Federation or SolFed for short.

When I first started out as an IWW a number of years ago my organizing was very detached with my co-workers and the thought of focusing on them never crossed my mind much. Because of that I kept the majority of my co-workers at a certain arms length and even with my fellow committee members I was emotionally unavailable.

Fighting for ourselves: anarcho-syndicalism and the class struggle by Solidarity Federation is a relatively expansive document from a membership-based group (as opposed to a writing group like Recomposition or Aufheben).

Who’s In Charge Here? Seizing the Means of Legitimacy Production in IWW Campaigns
by John O’Reilly

My first job
By Siobhan Breathnach

In this post we are excited to present some excerpts from Fighting for ourselves: anarcho-syndicalism and the class struggle, by the Solidarity Federation (‘SolFed’).

The U.S. government increasingly promoted collective bargaining in the early part of the 20th century. To take one important example: In 1919, economically disruptive disputes escalated between the International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU) and capitalists in the textile industry.

Dear Comrades,

The union seemed to start out in a strong position with a strike mandate from the membership of over 95%, but early in the strike cracks began to form. While the Canadian administration of the United Transit Union (UTU) was 100% behind the strike the international body based out of Cleveland Ohio, claimed they had to be asked first before workers could walk off the job.

The other day I met a student named Yusuf who said he wanted to figure out how to organize with the other tenants in his building. “I was active in community stuff when I was back in L.A.” he said. “But since I moved to New York, I haven’t met any of my neighbours.

Recent correspondence from Ken Georgetti (President of the Canada Labour Congress) and Michel Arsenault of the FTQ (Provincial Labour Central of Quebec) and various officers in the broader Anglophone Labour Movement sends a clear message: labour jurisdiction trumps labour solidarity.

I arrived in Montreal the night the government of Quebec had turned the province into a police state. Jean Charest had passed a law declaring any demonstration over 50 people not pre-approved by the police to be an illegal gathering punishable by up to $1,000 in fines for individuals and $125,000 in fines for any organisation endorsing the action.

Eight days after my daughter was born, I sent this message to the organizing committee members of the Seattle Solidarity Network:

The following is not a commentary on, much less a defense of, David Graeber – with whom I disagree. It is a critique of key facets of the ideology of Andrew Kliman.