Introduction

The introduction explains how the history of the AFL-CIO has been neglected, especially in the period since 1979, when Lane Kirkland took over from George Meany as president. What has been written - on fragmented parts of the AFL-CIO’s history - has usually been very hostile, particularly in terms of criticizing the AFL-CIO’s support for U.S. foreign policy during the Cold War, its bureaucratization, and its patchy civil rights record. I explain that my aim is to write a balanced history that recognizes the AFL-CIO’s achievements and its limitations, and focuses largely on domestic affairs. The book draws on newly-available archive sources, particularly unprocessed parts of the AFL-CIO Papers, and more than sixty oral history interviews conducted by the author. The introduction highlights the AFL-CIO’s ongoing relevance as the only mass membership, national organization fighting for working people in Washington. The AFL-CIO has performed this role – as the “People’s Lobby” - since it was established in 1955. The AFL-CIO speaks for all Americans who work, and - despite a media interest in union decline - in 2011 it still had more than 12 million members.