Synopses & Reviews
Seeking to reclaim a history that has remained largely ignored by most historians, this dramatic and stirring account examines each of the definitive American cooperative movements for social changefarmer, union, consumer, and communalistthat have been all but erased from collective memory. Focusing far beyond one particular era, organization, leader, or form of cooperation, the expansive analysis documents the multigenerational struggle of the American working people for social justice. With an expansive sweep and breathtaking detail, the chronicle considers Native American times and follows the American worker from the colonial workshop to the modern mass-assembly line, ultimately painting a vivid panorama of those who built the United States and those who will shape its future.
Review
"It is indeed inspiring . . . to be reminded by John Curl's new book of the noble history of cooperative work in the United States." Howard Zinn, author, A People's History of the United States
Review
"Curl surveys all and explains much. New generations of readers will find this a fascinating account." Paul Buhle, coeditor, Encyclopedia of the American Left, and founding editor, Radical America journal
About the Author
John Curl has been a member of Heartwood Cooperative Woodshop in Berkeley for over thirty years, and has belonged to numerous other cooperatives and collectives. His historical writings include the History of Work Cooperation in America (1980) and Memories of Drop City (2007), his memoir of the 1960s commune movement. He is a translator and biographer of Inca, Maya and Aztec poets in ANCIENT AMERICAN POETS (2006). His seven books of poetry include SCORCHED BIRTH, Columbus in the Bay of Pigs, and Decade: the 1990s. He is a longtime board member of PEN, chair of West Berkeley Artisans and Industrial Companies, a social activist, and has served as a city planning commissioner.