US Labor & Imperialism Pt. 1: the War Against Communism w/ Jeff Schuhrke

In this episode, part 1 of a 2-part miniseries on US labor and imperialism, Jeff Schuhrke joins us for a conversation on how US labor aided and at times even led the US's global fight against communism throughout much of the 20th century.

Jeff Schuhrke is a labor historian, journalist, union activist, and assistant professor at the Harry Van Arsdale Jr School of Labor Studies, SUNY Empire State University. He’s the author of Blue-Collar Empire: The Untold Story of US Labor's Global Anticommunist Crusade, and No Neutrals There: US Labor, Zionism, and the Struggle for Palestine.

In this conversation we take a deep dive into Jeff's book Blue-Collar Empire, exploring US labor's role in fighting global communism during the 20th century. The conversation opens with a history of the early US labor movement, anchored by the AFL, the CIO, and the IWW which all presented different approaches and ideological orientations towards labor and capital. We then look at how labor was systematically deradicalized over the course of the first half the 21st century, leading to a mostly anticommunist, class-collaborationist labor movement by the post-WWII era. We then look at how the AFL-CIO and its various arms participated and at times led the global war against communism abroad, participating in sabotage campaigns and in outright regime change operations led by the CIA and the State Department—from France to Guyana to Brazil to Chile to Vietnam to the USSR. Finally, we explore how US labor's anticommunist, pro-imperialist positions throughout the 20th century impacted the US proletariat and the international working class more broadly. 

Part 2 of this miniseries takes a deep dive into Jeff's book No Neutrals There, looking at US labor's role in supporting Zionism and the ethnic cleansing of Palestine. 

Further resources:

• Blue-Collar Empire: The Untold Story of US Labor's Global Anticommunist Crusade
• No Neutrals There: US Labor, Zionism, and the Struggle for Palestine
• Allaince for Global Justice

Related episodes:

• US Labor & Imperialism Pt. 2: Zionism w/ Jeff Schuhrke (Palestine Pt. 16)
• From the Frontlines: Organizing Against Amazon w/ Chris Smalls and Mars Verrone
• Black Scare / Red Scare with Charisse Burden-Stelly
• Third Worldism and the Bandung Spirit w/ Pranay Somayajula
• Walter Rodney, Marxism, and Underdevelopment with D. Musa Springer and Charisse Burden-Stelly
• A History of the CIA, Coups, and Assassinations w/ Vijay Prashad
• Socialism Betrayed w/ Roger Keeran and Joe Jamison
• What Is To Be Done? with Breht O'Shea and Alyson Escalante
• Our ongoing Patreon series on Venezuela 

Intermission music: "Only Got One Body" by Shiv and the Carvers

Cover art: Berwyn Mure

Upstream is entirely listener funded. No ads, no promotions, no grants—just Patreon subscriptions and listener donations. We couldn't keep this project going without your support. Subscribe to our Patreon for bi-weekly bonus episodes, access to our entire back catalog of Patreon episodes, and for Upstream stickers and bumper stickers at certain subscription tiers. Through your support you’ll be helping us keep Upstream sustainable and helping to keep this whole project going—socialist political education podcasts are not easy to fund so thank you in advance for the crucial support. patreon.com/upstreampodcast

For more from Upstream, visit www.upstreampodcast.org and follow us on Instagram and Bluesky. You can also subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.