The Platypus Affiliated Society

Event report: 2018 Labor Notes Conference

I RECENTLY ATTENDED THE 2018 LABOR NOTES CONFERENCE, which is probably the largest rank-and-file union conference of organized labor in the United States. I went to find out what labor has been doing across the country and for my own interest in the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, to see what struggle had broken out amongst its members. Labor Notes has a special place in my heart, not just because it has stood as a bastion for radical organizers since the 80s, but also because it represents, as I see it, the last pillar of labor in the age of Trump.

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Interview with Matt Cavagrotti and Greg Lucero of Teamsters for a Democratic Union

Radical Minds co-hosts Erin Hagood and Stephanie Gomez interview Matt Cavagrotti and Greg Lucero on the historical and contemporary relationship between socialism and organized labor.

Greg Lucero is a member of Teamsters, Revolutionary Chicago, and the Socialist Party USA. Matt Cavagrotti is a member of Teamsters and the Platypus Affiliated Society.

Topics discussed include:

Recent wave of American teachers' strikes
AFSCME vs. Janus Supreme Court decision
Upcoming contract negotiations between UPS and Teamsters
Legacy of the New Communist Movement's failed "turn to industry" in the 1970s
The nature and problems of revolutionary leadership
Prospects for reviving unionism and socialism in the U.S.

Radical Minds is a radio show exploring the intersection between politics and economics in the modern world, broadcast on WHPK (88.5 FM Chicago). This episode aired May 24, 2018.

The article referenced by Greg is Radical Minds' interview with Mark Rudd, leader of Students for a Democratic Society and co-founder of the Weather Underground, published in issue 24 of the Platypus Review.

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