Labor historian Michael Goldfield, author of The Southern Key, offers his analysis of why the Amazon warehouse union drive in Bessemer, Alabama was unsuccessful and how similar outcomes can be avoided in the future.

What can the labor struggles of unions in the 30s and 40s in the South tell us about the character of U.S. politics and the labor movement today? An interview with Marxist Michael Goldfield on his book The Southern Key: Class, Race, and Radicalism in the 1930s and 1940s.

The rise of Trump and the lack of development of a major political party that represents the interests of the working class in the United States has led many to ask if there is something peculiar about American society. Goldfield and Melcher argue that the question, and its answer, are rooted in the organization of southern workers and a united front against white supremacy.

Despite its long history of often reactionary politics, the US South was and remains central to broader labor struggles across the American continent. Below, political scientist Mike Goldfield argues that the possibilities for a Southern labor upsurge are stronger than ever.