“As a second-generation member of the IWW, I am delighted to see
this outstanding collection of essays on the Wobblies, their
achievements, and their substantial impact despite severe
repression"--Noam Chomsky
Founded in 1905, Chicago's Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) is a
union unlike any other. With members affectionately called "Wobblies"
and an evolutionary and internationalist philosophy and tactics, it
rapidly grew across the world. Considering the history of the IWW
from an international perspective for the first time, Wobblies of
the World brings together a group of leading scholars to present
a lively collection of accounts from thirteen diverse countries,
revealing a fascinating story of anarchism, syndicalism, and
socialism. Chapters include:
*"A Cosmopolitan Crowd" Transnational Anarchists, the IWW
and the American Radical Press by Kenyon Zimmer
*Living Social Dynamite: Early Twentieth-Century IWW-South Asia
Connections by Tariq Khan
*IWW Internationalism and Interracial Organizing in the Southwestern
United States by David M. Struthers
*Spanish Anarchists and Maritime Workers in the IWW by Bieito Alonso
*The IWW and the Dilemmas of Labor Internationalism by Wayne Thorpe
*Wobblies Down Under: The IWW in Australia by Verity Burgmann
*Ki Nga Kaimahi Maori ('To All Maori Workers'): The New Zealand IWW
and the Maori by Mark Derby
*Patrick Hodgens Hickey and the IWW: A Transnational Relationship by
Peter Clayworth
*Edith Frenette: A Transnational Radical Life by Heather Mayer
*Tom Barker and Revolutionary Europe by Paula de Angelis
*P. J. Welinder and "American Syndicalism" in Interwar
Sweden by Johan Pries
*Tramp, Tramp, Tramp: The Songs of Joe Hill Around the World by Bucky
Halker
*And much, much more!
Drawing on many important figures of the movement--Har Dayal, James
Larkin, William D. "Big Bill" Haywood, Enrique Flores
Magón, and more--the contributors describe how the IWW and its
ideals spread, exploring the crucial role the IWW played in
industries such as shipping, mining, and agriculture.
Ultimately, the book illuminates Wobblie methods of organizing, forms
of expression, practices, and transnational issues, offering a
fascinating alternative history of the group