From Union Hall to Art Studio; Building Worker Power

On this week’s Labor Heritage Power Hour, we preview the 2026 DC Labor FilmFest—already drawing packed houses—with classic strike documentaries and sharp new films tackling layoffs, automation, and life in the modern workplace.

We also head to Detroit for a new UNITE HERE arts residency that gives union members paid time to develop their creative voices—an innovative effort to build solidarity and expand the reach of labor storytelling. (Deadline to apply: May 15!)

Plus, we dig into labor history with labor historian Rudy Batzel talking with America’s Workforce Radio Podcast about how race, class, and strikebreaking shaped the movement—and still do today. As the nation approaches its 250th anniversary, historian Joe McCartin introduces the #Peoples250 campaign, lifting up working-class stories and inviting everyone to help tell a more complete history of the United States.

This week’s Labor Landmark takes us to Birmingham, Alabama, where two Black union leaders stopped a Ku Klux Klan bombing—an extraordinary act of courage rooted in labor and civil rights organizing. And in Labor History in 2, we look at the ongoing fight for workplace safety.

Our music this week is Hope by Carsie Blanton, a reminder that solidarity, courage, and care—put into collective action—are what keep the movement moving forward.

Broadcast on April 30, 2026; hosted by Chris Garlock and Elise Bryant; produced by Chris Garlock; engineered by Kahlia Chapman.

The Labor Heritage Power Hour is a member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network and syndicated on Pacifica’s Audioport.

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