B. J. Widick
Encyclopedia
B. J. Widick was an American
labor
activist in the United Auto Workers
union and socialist movements.
An immigrant to the United States
from Yugoslavia
with his father when he was three years old, Widick attended the University of Akron
in Ohio
, graduating with a degree in economics
in 1934.
In the Great Depression
of the 1930s, Widick became active in the political left, first as a sympathizer with the Communist Party USA
, then as a participant in the American
Trotskyist movement. He joining the Communist League of America
in 1934 and followed the Trotskyist movement's various configurations through the decade, helping to form the Socialist Workers Party
in 1938.
Widick was a reporter for the Akron Beacon Journal
from 1933 to 1936 and was involved in drives by the Committee of Industrial Organizations
to unionize the rubber
industry
in Ohio
, becoming the research director for the United Rubber Workers in 1937.
In 1937 Widick traveled to Mexico
and met with the exiled Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky
to discuss the American labor upsurge, and there he met Diego Rivera
and Frieda Kahlo. In the 1940 split of the Trotskyist movement, however, Widick went with the minority current of dissidents led by Max Shachtman
and helped found the Workers Party, writing for its periodicals Labor Action and New International, often under pseudonyms.
After serving in the army
during World War II
Widick became active in the United Auto Workers
as a chief steward and plant official in a Chrysler
plant from 1947 until 1959. The UAW at that time was in the heyday of its influence, both with in the broad labor movement and in American society. In 1960-61, Widick joined the national staff of the union as an aide to UAW leader Walter Reuther
, about whom he had written a biography, The UAW and Walter Reuther (1949), with Irving Howe
.
In 1949, the Workers Party had become the Independent Socialist League. By the end of the 1950s, as the movement fragmented, Widick was mostly aligned with Michael Harrington
and Bogdan Denitch
, who would later establish the moderate Democratic Socialists of America
. In the 1960s, he became a professor of labor studies, teaching at Wayne State University
and Columbia University
. He contributed articles to The Nation
, The New Republic
, Dissent
, and New Politics
.
Nelson Lichtenstein
has written that Widick "was a synthesizer more than a truly original thinker," but that "his authority as writer and teacher was rightly enhanced by his rich engagement with a generation of shop militants and union leaders, which he deployed to frame and popularize for postwar labor-liberals key issues facing the unions in an era of racial tension, industrial conflict and urban decline."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
labor
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
activist in the United Auto Workers
United Auto Workers
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers , is a labor union which represents workers in the United States and Puerto Rico, and formerly in Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial...
union and socialist movements.
An immigrant to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
with his father when he was three years old, Widick attended the University of Akron
University of Akron
The University of Akron is a coeducational public research university located in Akron, Ohio, United States. The university is part of the University System of Ohio. It was founded in 1870 as a small college affiliated with the Universalist Church. In 1913 ownership was transferred to the City of...
in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, graduating with a degree in economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
in 1934.
In the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
of the 1930s, Widick became active in the political left, first as a sympathizer with the Communist Party USA
Communist party
A political party described as a Communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of communism through a communist form of government...
, then as a participant in the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Trotskyist movement. He joining the Communist League of America
Communist League of America
The Communist League of America was founded by James P. Cannon, Max Shachtman and Martin Abern late in 1928 after their expulsion from the Communist Party USA for Trotskyism. The CLA was the United States section of Leon Trotsky's International Left Opposition and initially positioned itself as...
in 1934 and followed the Trotskyist movement's various configurations through the decade, helping to form the Socialist Workers Party
Socialist Workers Party (United States)
The Socialist Workers Party is a far-left political organization in the United States. The group places a priority on "solidarity work" to aid strikes and is strongly supportive of Cuba...
in 1938.
Widick was a reporter for the Akron Beacon Journal
Akron Beacon Journal
The Akron Beacon Journal is a four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning morning newspaper in Akron, Ohio, United States, and published by Black Press Ltd.. It is the sole daily newspaper in Akron and is distributed throughout Northeast Ohio. The paper places a strong emphasis on local news and business...
from 1933 to 1936 and was involved in drives by the Committee of Industrial Organizations
Congress of Industrial Organizations
The Congress of Industrial Organizations, or CIO, proposed by John L. Lewis in 1932, was a federation of unions that organized workers in industrial unions in the United States and Canada from 1935 to 1955. The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 required union leaders to swear that they were not...
to unionize the rubber
Rubber
Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...
industry
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, becoming the research director for the United Rubber Workers in 1937.
In 1937 Widick traveled to Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and met with the exiled Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky , born Lev Davidovich Bronshtein, was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and theorist, Soviet politician, and the founder and first leader of the Red Army....
to discuss the American labor upsurge, and there he met Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera
Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez was a prominent Mexican painter born in Guanajuato, Guanajuato, an active communist, and husband of Frida Kahlo . His large wall works in fresco helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement in...
and Frieda Kahlo. In the 1940 split of the Trotskyist movement, however, Widick went with the minority current of dissidents led by Max Shachtman
Max Shachtman
Max Shachtman was an American Marxist theorist. He evolved from being an associate of Leon Trotsky to a social democrat and mentor of senior assistants to AFL-CIO President George Meany.-Beginnings:...
and helped found the Workers Party, writing for its periodicals Labor Action and New International, often under pseudonyms.
After serving in the army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Widick became active in the United Auto Workers
United Auto Workers
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers , is a labor union which represents workers in the United States and Puerto Rico, and formerly in Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial...
as a chief steward and plant official in a Chrysler
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
plant from 1947 until 1959. The UAW at that time was in the heyday of its influence, both with in the broad labor movement and in American society. In 1960-61, Widick joined the national staff of the union as an aide to UAW leader Walter Reuther
Walter Reuther
Walter Philip Reuther was an American labor union leader, who made the United Automobile Workers a major force not only in the auto industry but also in the Democratic Party in the mid 20th century...
, about whom he had written a biography, The UAW and Walter Reuther (1949), with Irving Howe
Irving Howe
Irving Howe was an American literary and social critic and a prominent figure of the Democratic Socialists of America.-Life and career:...
.
In 1949, the Workers Party had become the Independent Socialist League. By the end of the 1950s, as the movement fragmented, Widick was mostly aligned with Michael Harrington
Michael Harrington
Edward Michael "Mike" Harrington was an American democratic socialist, writer, political activist, professor of political science, radio commentator and founder of the Democratic Socialists of America.-Personal life:...
and Bogdan Denitch
Bogdan Denitch
Bogdan Denitch is an American sociologist of Yugoslav origin who is an emeritus professor at the City University of New York . He is a leading authority on the political sociology of the former Yugoslavia...
, who would later establish the moderate Democratic Socialists of America
Democratic Socialists of America
Democratic Socialists of America is a social-democratic organization in the United States and the U.S. affiliate of the Socialist International, an international federation of social-democratic,democratic socialist and labor political parties and organizations.DSA was formed in 1982 by a merger of...
. In the 1960s, he became a professor of labor studies, teaching at Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
and Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. He contributed articles to The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
, The New Republic
The New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
, Dissent
Dissent
Dissent is a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or an entity...
, and New Politics
New Politics (magazine)
New Politics is an independent socialist journal founded in 1961 and still published in the United States today. While it is inclusive of articles from a variety of left-of-center positions, the publication leans strongly toward a Third camp, democratic Marxist perspective, placing it typically to...
.
Nelson Lichtenstein
Nelson Lichtenstein
Nelson Lichtenstein is a professor of history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and director of the Center for the Study of Work, Labor and Democracy...
has written that Widick "was a synthesizer more than a truly original thinker," but that "his authority as writer and teacher was rightly enhanced by his rich engagement with a generation of shop militants and union leaders, which he deployed to frame and popularize for postwar labor-liberals key issues facing the unions in an era of racial tension, industrial conflict and urban decline."
Writings
- The UAW and Walter Reuther, with Irving Howe (Random House, 1949)
- Labor Today: The Triumphs and Failures of Unionism in the United States (Houghton, 1964)
- Detroit: City of Race and Class Violence (Quadrangle, 1972; rev. ed., Wayne State University Press, 1989)
- Editor, Auto Work and Its Discontents (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1976)
Sources
- Professor B. J. Widick dies, Acron Beacon Journal blog, 2008
- Lichtenstein, NelsonNelson LichtensteinNelson Lichtenstein is a professor of history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and director of the Center for the Study of Work, Labor and Democracy...
. "B. J. Widick and the UAW," Against the CurrentAgainst the CurrentAgainst the Current could refer to:* Against the Current, the journal of the socialist group Solidarity * Against the Current, a 2009 film starring Joseph Fiennes, Elizabeth Reaser, and Justin Kirk...
, Nov.-Dec. 2008 - Wald, Alan. "B. J. Widick, 1910-2008," Against the CurrentAgainst the CurrentAgainst the Current could refer to:* Against the Current, the journal of the socialist group Solidarity * Against the Current, a 2009 film starring Joseph Fiennes, Elizabeth Reaser, and Justin Kirk...
, Sept.-Oct. 2008