In These Times's The ITT List was recently named one of the top 5 campaign blogs for its coverage of the Democratic National Convention.

What does the AFL-CIO do, anyway?

By Christopher Hayes

In some ways, that’s exactly the question a lot of people seem to be asking. Here’s the short answer: The AFL-CIO works to coordinate the activities and the leverage the collective strength of its affiliates in three main areas—organizing, lobbying and politics. Perhaps the thing the AFL-CIO does best these days is mobilize its members to vote. Under Sweeney and… return to article

  • subscribe to print magazine

  • Zoom OutZoom In Reader Comments (3)

    Page 1 of 1 pages

    where is the article?

    United States Posted by cyberella2002 on Jan 19, 2005 at 10:22 AM

    John Sweeney did not establish the Organizing Institute.  That was a project supported by Tom Donahue, the secretary-treasurer under Lane Kirkland.  The OI was long in existence before John Sweeney took over as president of the AFL-CIO.

    United States Posted by Tim1965 on Jan 22, 2005 at 10:15 AM

    When I wrote to the AFL-CIO complaining about NAFTA and the likelihood our jobs would disappear, they essentially told me NAFTA would be good for us due to increasing exports.

    This is what the National Chamber of commerce said until this summmer.

    They were right — we now export to johnson & johnson, GE, GM Electro-Motive Division, Avery-Dennison and a whole list of companies which used to be next door.

    The AFL-CIO added that they will mind their business and I should mind mine.

    Like politicians, they watch out for themselves not us.

    United States Posted by whattheheck on Nov 13, 2005 at 7:45 AM
    Page 1 of 1 pages

  • register a new account »Posting Security

    To participate in our forums, please register for a free account.
     

    Retreive lost password »

Article Appeared in this Issue

Full contents
Past issues

Also by Christopher Hayes
  • The New Road to Serfdom
    Over the course of 500 pages in The Shock Doctrine, Naomi Klein documents the moments of chaos and disruption that allow a small coterie of experts to swoop in and administer what's invariably called "bitter medicine," "painful reforms" or "shock therapy"
  • Who’s Afraid of Democracy?
    Believing that "people are rational as consumers and irrational as voters," many conservatives would favor free markets without democracy
  • What We Learn When We Learn Economics
    Is a little economics a dangerous thing?
  • The Abramoff Babies
    Like the "Watergate Babies" of 1974, the new Democratic Congress will have to pick between sustanative or procedural reforms.
  • The Good War on Terror
    How the Greatest Generation helped pave the road to Baghdad
  • Economic Populism Proves Popular
    To thwart legislation that put caps on payday lending rates, Republican lawmakers in Oregon had to pass it
Popular Discussions