#1780 Cynicism Is a Scab: Hope, Solidarity, and the Labor Fight That Never Stopped
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Ben Fletcher: Life, IWW, and Racial Inclusion
Detailed biography of Ben Fletcher and why his interracial organizing legacy was marginalized in mainstream labor history.
Air Date: 3/27/2026
Today we examine the relationship between labor education, moral ambition, and the possibility of a better world. We'll hear about IWW members building a "Philosophy 101" for organizers, a historian's argument that humanity is fundamentally cooperative rather than selfish, and why getting labor history into public schools may be one of the most important organizing projects of our time.
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TOP TAKES
KP 1: A Case for Human Decency (by Rutger Bregman) Part 1 - Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso - Air Date 10-25-20
KP 2: 73 Ben Fletcher, Part 1 - Working Class History - Air Date 6-5-23
KP 3: Striking At Kings Part 1 - Labor Heritage Power Hour - Air Date 2-12-26
KP 4: The Unsung Women of the Labor Movement with Jenny Kaplan Part 1 - The Bright Side - Air Date 9-2-24
KP 5: Climate Justice Through Collective Liberation Mikaela Loach Part 1 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 8-6-25
KP 6: Are We Trapped In Meaningless Jobs (With Rutger Bregman) Part 1 - Lever Time - Air Date 12-18-25
(00:49:56) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
Solidarity Isn't a Feeling — It's a Structure (And Bosses Know It)
DEEPER DIVES
(01:01:40) SECTION A: HISTORY
A1: Restoration, Revolution and English Enlightenment - The History of England - Air Date 11-9-25
A2: 73 Ben Fletcher, Part 1 Part 2 - Working Class History - Air Date 6-5-23
A4: The Unsung Women of the Labor Movement with Jenny Kaplan Part 2 - The Bright Side - Air Date 9-2-24
(01:40:45) SECTION B: ORGANIZING
B1: Eugene Debs' Winning a World Speech, 1904 - Bucckeyye Historin - Air Date 9-28-24
B2: What Does It Mean To Be Member Run Part 1 - One Big Podcast - Air Date 6-6-21
B4: What Does It Mean To Be Member Run Part 2 - One Big Podcast - Air Date 6-6-21
B5: Are We Trapped In Meaningless Jobs (With Rutger Bregman) Part 2 - Lever Time - Air Date 12-18-25
(02:24:47) SECTION C: EDUCATION
C1: IWW Education and Organizing in Higher Ed Part 1 - One Big Podcast - Air Date 1-17-26
C2: Striking At Kings Part 2 - Labor Heritage Power Hour - Air Date 2-12-26
C4: IWW Education and Organizing in Higher Ed Part 2 - One Big Podcast - Air Date 1-17-26
(02:55:10) SECTION D: VISION
D1: A Case for Human Decency (by Rutger Bregman) Part 2 - Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso - Air Date 10-25-20
D3: The Importance Of Revolutionary Optimism - Second Thought - Air Date 10-8-21
D4: Climate Justice Through Collective Liberation Mikaela Loach Part 2 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 8-6-25
SHOW IMAGE CREDITS
Description: Photo of a worker at a Fight for $15 rally calling into a megaphone while the crowd behind her holds protest signs.
Credit: "Fast food workers on strike for higher minimum wage and better benefits" by Fibonacci Blue, Flickr | CC BY 2.0 | Changes: Cropped
Produced by Jay! Tomlinson
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