East Side Freedom Library offers history course and programs

The East Side Freedom Library in St. Paul is offering a six-part course on “The History of Labor in Minnesota,” as well as two programs in October on worker and union history.

“The History of Labor in Minnesota” will run from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursdays from Oct. 16 to Nov. 20 at the Freedom Library, 1105 Greenbrier St., The class is co-sponsored by the Saint Paul Public Schools Adult and Community Education Program.

Peter Rachleff, co-founder of the East Side Freedom Library, will discuss key chapters in the history of Minnesota’s working people, including labor in the Gilded Age, immigrant miners and robber barons, employer resistance to unions, the tumultuous 1930s, the Hormel strike of 1985-1986 and women, immigrants and white collar workers.

To register, contact the Public Schools’ Adult and Community Education office at 651-767-8179.  There is a small registration fee.

On Oct. 15, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Rachleff will speak on “The Labor Movement and the Struggle for Democracy in Minnesota.” This program will be held at the Arlington Hills Community Center, 1200 Payne Ave, St. Paul. It is also co-sponsored by the Saint Paul Public Schools Adult and Community Education Program.

On Oct. 18, the Freedom Library will present a panel on “Four Voices for Labor: Making St. Paul Work for Working People.” The program will run from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Freedom Library. Light food and refreshments will be provided.

A panel of local historians will discuss four significant St. Paul labor leaders:

• William Mahoney, founder of the Farmer Labor Party, editor of the Union Advocate and mayor of St. Paul in the early 1930s
• Frank Boyd, organizer of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, leader of St. Paul’s African American community and civil rights pioneer
• Florence Rood, president of the St. Paul Federation of Teachers, first woman to serve as president of a union which had male and female members, and appointee to the Minnesota Board of Education
• Joe Karth, president of the Oil, Chemical, and Atomic Workers’ Union at 3M and U.S. Congressman representing St. Paul from 1950-1958

This program is co-sponsored by the Farmer Labor Education Committee.

For more information on any of these programs, e-mail the Freedom Library or phone 651-774-8687.