Telling the stories of African American domestic workers, this
book resurrects a little-known history of domestic worker activism in
the 1960s and 1970s, offering new perspectives on race, labor,
feminism, and organizing.
In this
groundbreaking history of African American domestic-worker
organizing, scholar and activist Premilla Nadasen shatters countless
myths and misconceptions about an historically misunderstood
workforce. Resurrecting a little-known history of domestic-worker
activism from the 1950s to the 1970s, Nadasen shows how these women
were a far cry from the stereotyped passive and powerless victims;
they were innovative labor organizers who tirelessly organized on
buses and streets across the United States to bring dignity and legal
recognition to their occupation.
Dismissed by
mainstream labor as “unorganizable,” African American household
workers developed unique strategies for social change and formed
unprecedented alliances with activists in both the women’s rights
and the black freedom movements. Using storytelling as a form of
activism and as means of establishing a collective identity as
workers, these women proudly declared, “We refuse to be your
mammies, nannies, aunties, uncles, girls, handmaidens any longer.”
With compelling
personal stories of the leaders and participants on the front lines,
Household Workers Unite gives voice to the poor women of color
whose dedicated struggle for higher wages, better working conditions,
and respect on the job created a sustained political movement that
endures today.
Winner of the
2016 Sara A. Whaley Book Prize