Sisters in the Brotherhoods and All That Jazz
written by bendygirl
at Thursday, September 11, 2008
Do you live in New York City? If so, don’t miss this event: 
(Palgrave/Macmillan 2008).
WHEN: September 16th, 2008 — 6 p.m.
WHERE: Tamiment Library
70 Washington Square South, 10th Flr, NYC
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
FOR INFORMATION: 212-998-2636
Organized by the New York Labor History Association
Co-sponsor: Tamiment Library / Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, NYU
But what exactly is this book about? I was curious, so I looked it up and found this:
Description
Sisters in the Brotherhoods is an oral-history-based study of women who have, against considerable odds, broken the gender barrier to blue-collar employment in various trades in New York City beginning in the 1970s. It is a story of the fight against deeply ingrained cultural assumptions about what constitutes women's work, the middle-class bias of feminism, the daily grinding sexism of male coworkers, and the institutionalized discrimination of employers and unions. It is also the story of some gutsy women who, seeking the material rewards and personal satisfactions of skilled manual labor, have struggled to make a place for themselves among New York City's construction workers, stationary engineers, firefighters, electronic technicians, plumbers, and transit workers. Each story contributes to an important unifying theme: the way women confronted the enormous sexism embedded in union culture and developed new organizational forms to support their struggles, including and especially the United Tradeswomen.
You know with all the swirl of stuff going on about Palin, it’s nice to see that there’s a book out there that takes a look at REAL Women who have done REAL jobs that had been reserved for men. Jobs like Firefighting, police, carpentry, oh hell, the jobs very much like what women in Cleveland can train for through the pre-apprenticeship programs through Hard Hatted Women.
Hard Hatted Women. needs you help to continue their work and you can help, you can go to their website and make a donation or you can also go to their upcoming fundraiser where Lilly Ledbetter will speak. I’d love to hear what Lilly has to say about the current race and not only about pay equity, but I’m also hoping, she’ll touch on the importance of the Employee Free Choice Act.
This year’s election is just too important, there’s just too much at stake. Register and vote. It’s really that important.
