No neutrals there: How US labor built Israel and ignored Palestine
JVL Introduction
Attempts in the labour movement in to show solidarity with the Palestinians after October 2023 were quickly scotched in the US by the trade union leadership.
As Jeff Schuhrke shows, this was the latest chapter in a long story, US labour having always been one of Israel’s most faithful allies.
The book traces the history of labour leaders consistent political positioning: alignment with Washington’s imperial policy abroad while policing dissent at home.
There were always counter pressures: Bundist workers, Arab American workers, Black radicals, anti-Zionist Jews, and internationalist unionists raised their voices over decades, but the AFL-CIO’s embrace of Labor Zionism has dominated.
Can it be changed now? Maybe. Schuhrke’s book, says Yahia Lababidi, is both an indictment and a call to action.
RK
This article was originally published by The New Arab on Wed 12 Nov 2025. Read the original here.
No neutrals there: How US labor built Israel and ignored Palestine
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Trade unions are, sadly, not always a force for progress.
Here is an example of what I mean:
“The Bristol Bus Boycott of 1963 arose from the refusal of the Bristol Omnibus Company (in conjunction with the Transport and General Workers’ Union) to employ Black or Asian bus crews in the city of Bristol, England.”
(Source: Wikipedia)