Red State Revolt (Paperback)

Eric Blanc

ISBN 10: 1788735749 / ISBN 13: 9781788735742

Published by Verso Books, London, 2019

About this Item

Paperback. After nearly four decades of labor quiescence, the US was hit by a wave of strikes in early 2018. Inspired by the wildcat victory in West Virginia, educators in Oklahoma, Arizona and beyond walked off their jobs to demand increased school funding and better pay. Confounding all expectations, these actions erupted in Republican-dominated states with weak unions, bans on public sector strikes, and electorates that voted for Trump in 2016. With similar movements now emerging in California, Colorado, North Carolina, and Massachusetts, there is no sign that this upsurge will be short-lived. Red State Revolt is an compelling analysis of the emergence and development of this historic strike wave, with an eye to extracting its main strategic lessons for educators, labor activists, and radicals across the country. A former high school teacher and longtime activist, Eric Blanc embedded himself into the rank-and-file leadership of the walkouts, where he was given access to internal organizing meetings and secret Facebook groups inaccessible to most journalists, populating the book with the voices of the school workers who put their livelihoods on the line. One of the most comprehensive portraits of a strike wave ever written, an indispensable window into the changing shape of the working class and American politics Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781788735742

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Red State Revolt (Paperback)
• Publisher: Verso Books, London
• Publication Date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1788735749
• ISBN 13: 9781788735742
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

An indispensable window into the changing shape of the American working class and American politics

Thirteen months after Trump allegedly captured the allegiance of “the white working class,” a strike wave—the first in over four decades—rocked the United States. Inspired by the wildcat victory in West Virginia, teachers in Oklahoma, Arizona, and across the country walked off their jobs and shut down their schools to demand better pay for educators, more funding for students, and an end to years of austerity.

Confounding all expectations, these working-class rebellions erupted in regions with Republican electorates, weak unions, and bans on public sector strikes. By mobilizing to take their destinies into their own hands, red state school workers posed a clear alternative to politics as usual. And with similar actions now gaining steam in Los Angeles, Oakland, Denver, and Virginia, there is no sign that this upsurge will be short-lived.

Red State Revolt is a compelling analysis of the emergence and development of this historic strike wave, with an eye to extracting its main strategic lessons for educators, labor organizer, and radicals across the country. A former high school teacher and longtime activist, Eric Blanc embedded himself into the rank-and-file leaderships of the walkouts, where he was given access to internal organizing meetings and secret Facebook groups inaccessible to most journalists. The result is one of the richest portraits of the labor movement to date, a story populated with the voices of school workers who are winning the fight for the soul of public education—and redrawing the political map of the country at large.

About the Author

A former high school teacher, Eric Blanc has covered the strike wave for Jacobin, The Nation, and The Guardian.