One Big Union: Industrial Workers of the World

Although unions are traditionally organized by trade, industry, or sector, the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) was founded in 1905 in Chicago with the hope of forming one big international union. The IWW organizes both skilled and unskilled workers, building worker solidarity in sectors, such as textiles, docks, agriculture and mining.

Members, referred to as "Wobblies," are known for their radicalism and militancy, and continue to hold deep convictions encapsulated in the preamble to their Constitution. Links to an external site.

Tom Scribner Links to an external site., a long time and well known Santa Cruz resident, was a logger, labor organizer, and IWW member. He played the musical saw on Pacific Avenue for many years and there is a statue of him on the 1500 block in front of Bookshop Santa Cruz. His life was documented in his memoir Lumberjack Links to an external site. and the 1979 documentary The Wobblies (available Links to an external site. from Kanopy from Santa Cruz Public Library).

Tom Scribner playing the musical saw

"Tom Jefferson Scribner, 1899-1982 Links to an external site.." Local History Collection, Santa Cruz Public Library.

Questions

How and where do you think flyers like "A Call to Action!" would be distributed?
What in the Preamble for the IWW resonates with you, or continues to be relevant today?

"A Call to Action! To All Agricultural Workers" described in PDF linked below

IWW A Call to Action! (PDF/text version Download PDF/text version)

Scribner, Tom. Lumberjack. Redwood Ripsaw, 1966.

The Wobblies Links to an external site.. Dir. Deborah Shaffer, Stewart Bird. Kino Lorber, 1979. Kanopy.

"A Call to Action! To All Agricultural Workers." Labor Archives & Research Center, San Francisco State University.