Behind the Bastards Part Two: The Second American Civil War You Never Learned About
14 snips
Apr 23, 2020 AI Snips
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War Elevated Miners' Leverage
- World War I made coal miners strategically valuable, improving labor's leverage and government concessions.
- That leverage later reversed when soldiers returned and bosses cut wages, fueling postwar labor unrest.
Revolts Follow Broken Expectations
- Marx's emiseration theory predicts worsening worker conditions drive revolts, but history shows revolts also follow rising expectations that suddenly collapse.
- James C. Davies argues revolutions occur after improvements are unmet by subsequent decline, creating rage.
How Scab Mines Broke A Nationwide Strike
- The UMW could have shut down the nation but failed because nonunion West Virginia mines kept producing during winter shortages.
- Public hardship and those scab mines forced the union to capitulate and taught organizers to target Mingo County next.