Jane McAlevey, 1964-2024
July 9, 2024 4:56 AM Subscribe
Jane McAlevey, the labor organizer whose No Shortcuts is one of the most beloved and most recommended books of our political era, has passed away. Below the fold, several reminiscences and other pieces on her life, work, and influence.
In The Nation (where she served as strike correspondent), D. D. Guttenplan, "From the Moment She Joined a Fight, Jane McAlevey Was in It to Win."
Also in The Nation, Katie Miles, "She Usually Won.” Remembering Jane McAlevey, 1964–2024
In Jacobin, Alex N. Press, We’re in a Class War. Jane McAlevey Actually Acted Like It.
In Common Dreams, Jon Queally, 'Go Forth and Win!' Labor Movement Celebrates Life of Jane McAlevey (1964-2024)
Reviews of No Shortcuts: In Harper's by Dayna Tortorici, in Jacobin by Sam Gindin.
In The Nation (where she served as strike correspondent), D. D. Guttenplan, "From the Moment She Joined a Fight, Jane McAlevey Was in It to Win."
Also in The Nation, Katie Miles, "She Usually Won.” Remembering Jane McAlevey, 1964–2024
In Jacobin, Alex N. Press, We’re in a Class War. Jane McAlevey Actually Acted Like It.
In Common Dreams, Jon Queally, 'Go Forth and Win!' Labor Movement Celebrates Life of Jane McAlevey (1964-2024)
Reviews of No Shortcuts: In Harper's by Dayna Tortorici, in Jacobin by Sam Gindin.
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posted by HearHere at 5:10 AM on July 9 [1 favorite]
posted by HearHere at 5:10 AM on July 9 [1 favorite]
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posted by JoeXIII007 at 5:19 AM on July 9
posted by JoeXIII007 at 5:19 AM on July 9
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posted by GenjiandProust at 5:19 AM on July 9
posted by GenjiandProust at 5:19 AM on July 9
too young
posted by rikschell at 5:49 AM on July 9 [1 favorite]
posted by rikschell at 5:49 AM on July 9 [1 favorite]
damn.
posted by toodleydoodley at 5:56 AM on July 9
posted by toodleydoodley at 5:56 AM on July 9
I found this a moving tribute from a friend and protege.
Like most people who got into unions after 2016 when No Shortcuts was published, I was enormously influenced by Jane McAlevey. Read several of her books, attended her Organizing for Power training, found her interviews and essays persuasive and inspiring.
She was forceful and opinionated in a way that women are often punished for. In my opinion she was sometimes wrong. Good on her for being opinionated enough to be wrong sometimes. And who am I to say; she was a fucking giant.
posted by latkes at 7:18 AM on July 9 [5 favorites]
Like most people who got into unions after 2016 when No Shortcuts was published, I was enormously influenced by Jane McAlevey. Read several of her books, attended her Organizing for Power training, found her interviews and essays persuasive and inspiring.
She was forceful and opinionated in a way that women are often punished for. In my opinion she was sometimes wrong. Good on her for being opinionated enough to be wrong sometimes. And who am I to say; she was a fucking giant.
posted by latkes at 7:18 AM on July 9 [5 favorites]
.
I attended the organizing for power training and it really left a bad taste in my mouth. They did a training sequence where they taught you to bully undocumented hotel workers into letting you take their picture and post it. Not taking no for an answer stuff.
That kind of strategy turned a ton of people off in my company, and was a major criterion cited for why people didn't like us.
posted by constraint at 8:24 AM on July 9 [1 favorite]
I attended the organizing for power training and it really left a bad taste in my mouth. They did a training sequence where they taught you to bully undocumented hotel workers into letting you take their picture and post it. Not taking no for an answer stuff.
That kind of strategy turned a ton of people off in my company, and was a major criterion cited for why people didn't like us.
posted by constraint at 8:24 AM on July 9 [1 favorite]
Thinking I likely would have a different framing from 'bully' but I imagine I know what you mean. IMHO ultimately per her theory of union wins (super-majority) everyone does have to put themselves at risk. It's a very different theory of change than what we often talk about now especially considering our relative differences in social power (privilege), but it's how lots of historic worker wins were won. But I can relate to finding her & her theory off putting at times.
posted by latkes at 9:22 AM on July 9
posted by latkes at 9:22 AM on July 9
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posted by gentlyepigrams at 11:59 AM on July 9
posted by gentlyepigrams at 11:59 AM on July 9
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posted by kensington314 at 12:12 PM on July 9
posted by kensington314 at 12:12 PM on July 9
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My union is literally using her books as textbooks for our negotiating, strike school, etc.
posted by honey badger at 12:43 PM on July 9 [2 favorites]
My union is literally using her books as textbooks for our negotiating, strike school, etc.
posted by honey badger at 12:43 PM on July 9 [2 favorites]
.
We need more people of her caliber.
Fuck Cancer.
posted by theora55 at 3:37 PM on July 9 [2 favorites]
We need more people of her caliber.
Fuck Cancer.
posted by theora55 at 3:37 PM on July 9 [2 favorites]
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posted by Token Meme at 7:47 PM on July 9
posted by Token Meme at 7:47 PM on July 9
This is awful.
My union is hopeless, primary a vehicle for people's self interest; it was extremely evident at the convention we had in May(my first time as a delegate) when the retiring president wasted so much time on endless self congratulatory speeches that a brave, young delegate called her out for it.
I have a much more clear sense of what my union is thanks to No Shortcuts, and Jane McAlevey.
I am reading it very slowly, when I am in the right frame of mind, and I thank her for putting into words what I have seen in the 7 and half years I have had my current job.
What a legacy she leaves.
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posted by Phlegmco(tm) at 11:43 PM on July 9 [2 favorites]
My union is hopeless, primary a vehicle for people's self interest; it was extremely evident at the convention we had in May(my first time as a delegate) when the retiring president wasted so much time on endless self congratulatory speeches that a brave, young delegate called her out for it.
I have a much more clear sense of what my union is thanks to No Shortcuts, and Jane McAlevey.
I am reading it very slowly, when I am in the right frame of mind, and I thank her for putting into words what I have seen in the 7 and half years I have had my current job.
What a legacy she leaves.
.
posted by Phlegmco(tm) at 11:43 PM on July 9 [2 favorites]
.
posted by TheophileEscargot at 3:37 AM on July 10
posted by TheophileEscargot at 3:37 AM on July 10
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posted by tofu_crouton at 7:43 AM on July 10
posted by tofu_crouton at 7:43 AM on July 10
constraint, your perspective on the techniques hadn't occurred to me, so thanks for the reminder that one approach is not going to work for everybody.
I first heard about McAlevey on Season Of The Bitch podcast, where the thing she said that caught my attention was directed at armchair activists: men, usually, offering critiques of her methods that were based on nothing but their abstract navel-gazing.
She was in a panel that I attended live in fall 2019. 3 seconds after the talk ended, my husband jumped out of his chair and said to me, "I feel like I can do anything!" -- that is how good organizers move people at scale, by making each person they talk to feel empowered, and guiding their empowerment in taking effective collective action.
Here's a remembrance written by her colleague, Ethan Earle.
I attended yesterday's online tribute to her, organized by her colleagues and mentees. I'll be vague to respect the privacy of people who were sharing memories, but here are some snippets:
A mentee from Africa said that McAlevey worked through with her regarding how to apply the principles of the training, given that this mentee's particular African context was very different from a lot of Global North contexts. But these principles were the same: organize around the ISSUES, and focus on the rank-and-file, not people who had anointed themselves leaders. Also, hehe, that McAlevey swore a lot, but would catch herself and apologize because she knew that this mentee is Christian and didn't like swearing.
One woman talked about how being a woman in the labor movement meant unlearning all the female social skills she'd been taught (eg, always filling in silences with reassurances), and that one of McAlevey's goals was to build a network of women organizers who would support each other.
They talked about how she faced her oncoming death forthrightly, that she talked about how her situation was better than most people's (yay good healthcare from her union!). Through video meetings and texts and calls, she kept working with organizers all over the world from her hospital bed during chemo, because pursuing justice gave her life (one mentee introduced an anecdote with "One of the times she had only two weeks to live..."). She knew that with the climate crisis we're running out of time.
One mentee had been texting her excerpts from Audre Lorde's Cancer Journal, as feminist fuel, including this one: "What I most regretted were my silences. . .. Death is the final silence. That might be coming quickly now... I was going to die whether or not I had spoken for myself. My silences had not protected me. Your silence will not protect you. . . . Black & white women, [etc] supported me. . . . I am not only a casualty. I am also a warrior."
At the end, the organizers had put together a montage of photos of Jane and fellow organizers, and texts from people and orgs from all over the world, Burkina Faso, Mexico, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, India, Venezuela, Djibouti, the Maldives, Benin. And an alliance of domestic migrant workers based in Lebanon, which got me right in the feels because of having read Harsha Wallia's Border and Rule last year.
One of the photos was of McAlevey with a Decolonize Feminism bag, which could be argued to be performative, except for the fact that from what I've seen, she earned her support from many Global South people.
Aed they included a recording of McAlevey addressing the most recent online training cohort:
"As I bow out, I wanna say 2 things: 1. [the Audrey Lorde phrase that a mentee] sent to me one day said "I am deliberate and afraid of nothing" it's on a tshirt I'm looking at right now. I say that to myself 200x/day, u shd put this on your morning to-do list. Part of what's letting me die is knowing [that this mentee] is taking my place, & all of the organizers, cuz they're all serious about running & winning campaigns. So go get 'em, & bring thousands more."
And the soundtrack playing over the montage included All You Fascists Bound To Lose. Dunno if it was this artist particularly, but definitely a female singer.
posted by cybercoitus interruptus at 3:54 PM on July 28 [4 favorites]
I first heard about McAlevey on Season Of The Bitch podcast, where the thing she said that caught my attention was directed at armchair activists: men, usually, offering critiques of her methods that were based on nothing but their abstract navel-gazing.
She was in a panel that I attended live in fall 2019. 3 seconds after the talk ended, my husband jumped out of his chair and said to me, "I feel like I can do anything!" -- that is how good organizers move people at scale, by making each person they talk to feel empowered, and guiding their empowerment in taking effective collective action.
Here's a remembrance written by her colleague, Ethan Earle.
I attended yesterday's online tribute to her, organized by her colleagues and mentees. I'll be vague to respect the privacy of people who were sharing memories, but here are some snippets:
A mentee from Africa said that McAlevey worked through with her regarding how to apply the principles of the training, given that this mentee's particular African context was very different from a lot of Global North contexts. But these principles were the same: organize around the ISSUES, and focus on the rank-and-file, not people who had anointed themselves leaders. Also, hehe, that McAlevey swore a lot, but would catch herself and apologize because she knew that this mentee is Christian and didn't like swearing.
One woman talked about how being a woman in the labor movement meant unlearning all the female social skills she'd been taught (eg, always filling in silences with reassurances), and that one of McAlevey's goals was to build a network of women organizers who would support each other.
They talked about how she faced her oncoming death forthrightly, that she talked about how her situation was better than most people's (yay good healthcare from her union!). Through video meetings and texts and calls, she kept working with organizers all over the world from her hospital bed during chemo, because pursuing justice gave her life (one mentee introduced an anecdote with "One of the times she had only two weeks to live..."). She knew that with the climate crisis we're running out of time.
One mentee had been texting her excerpts from Audre Lorde's Cancer Journal, as feminist fuel, including this one: "What I most regretted were my silences. . .. Death is the final silence. That might be coming quickly now... I was going to die whether or not I had spoken for myself. My silences had not protected me. Your silence will not protect you. . . . Black & white women, [etc] supported me. . . . I am not only a casualty. I am also a warrior."
At the end, the organizers had put together a montage of photos of Jane and fellow organizers, and texts from people and orgs from all over the world, Burkina Faso, Mexico, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, India, Venezuela, Djibouti, the Maldives, Benin. And an alliance of domestic migrant workers based in Lebanon, which got me right in the feels because of having read Harsha Wallia's Border and Rule last year.
One of the photos was of McAlevey with a Decolonize Feminism bag, which could be argued to be performative, except for the fact that from what I've seen, she earned her support from many Global South people.
Aed they included a recording of McAlevey addressing the most recent online training cohort:
"As I bow out, I wanna say 2 things: 1. [the Audrey Lorde phrase that a mentee] sent to me one day said "I am deliberate and afraid of nothing" it's on a tshirt I'm looking at right now. I say that to myself 200x/day, u shd put this on your morning to-do list. Part of what's letting me die is knowing [that this mentee] is taking my place, & all of the organizers, cuz they're all serious about running & winning campaigns. So go get 'em, & bring thousands more."
And the soundtrack playing over the montage included All You Fascists Bound To Lose. Dunno if it was this artist particularly, but definitely a female singer.
posted by cybercoitus interruptus at 3:54 PM on July 28 [4 favorites]
Wow thank you for sharing that beautiful recap.
posted by latkes at 9:29 PM on July 28 [2 favorites]
posted by latkes at 9:29 PM on July 28 [2 favorites]
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