What do you think of Settlers. I read part of it a few years ago, so my opinion about it might be partially unfounded, but I found some of it to be annoying. The best example I can give concerns something I know a fair bit about: the IWW (of course, did you expect me to bring up any other part?). Sakai pissed me off because he used examples from individual shops or branches who had passed racist motions to paint the entire union as racist. He even at one point states that the true purpose of the union was to organize white workers. That part really turned me off of the book, not because it was about my union, but because if he can use examples of racist tendencies in individual shops and branches to say that the entire purpose of the IWW is to only protect white workers, then how do I know he's not spoon feeding bullshit throughout the rest of the book? I'm not excusing anything that wobblies in the past have done, but I couldn't help to be a bit offended by that generalization, especially when the IWW was helping organize workers that other unions wouldn't touch, particularly immigrant workers.
no subject
Date: 2007-01-22 01:13 am (UTC)