“Fuck Him, He Wasn’t With Us”

This chapter examines the convergence of events that thrust Harold Gibbons into the maelstrom of national politics and led to his estrangement from the Teamsters's hierarchy. It first considers how Gibbons's rifts with Teamsters played out among Local 688's membership in St. Louis, which helped oust Gibbons in the summer of 1973, terminated his political partnership with Ernest Calloway, and signaled the demise of their quest for total person unionism and working-class citizenship. It then discusses Calloway's gradual withdrawal from direct involvement in civil rights activism and union affairs by the end of the 1960s, assuming instead the role of respected community elder. It also describes Gibbons's opposition to the Vietnam War and his difficulty in finding outlets for political expression during the last years of his career, even as he continued with his advocacy of interracial politics and comprehensive strategies for urban revitalization. Finally, it reflects on Calloway's death on December 31, 1989.