I went West and took part in the strike of the machinists - the Southern Pacific Railroad, the corporation that swung California by its golden tail, that controlled its legislature, its farmers, its preachers, its workers.
Mother JonesRead
Out of labor's struggle in Arizona came better conditions for the workers, who must everywhere, at all times, under advantage and disadvantage work out their own salvation
Interpretation
What this quote means
The struggles of workers lead to improved conditions, emphasizing the importance of self-advocacy.
Mother Jones highlights the necessity for workers to fight for their rights and better conditions. She suggests that through their struggles, they can achieve improvements that benefit all, underscoring the idea that change must come from within the worker community, regardless of their circumstances.
Themes
WorkersStruggleLaborConditionsAdvocacySalvation
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech advocating for workers' rights during a labor rally.
More from Mother Jones
All quotes βSome day the workers will take possession of your city hall, and when we do, no child will be sacrificed on the altar of profit!
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Injustice boils in men's hearts as does steel in its cauldron, ready to pour forth, white hot, in the fullness of time.
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I believe that movements to suppress wrongs can be carried out under the protection of our flag.
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Your ancestors fought for you to have a share in that institution over there. It's yours. See the school board, and every Friday night hold your meetings there. Have your wives clean it up Saturday morning for the children to enter Monday. Your organization is not a praying institution. It's a fighting institution. It's an educational institution along industrial lines. Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living!
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Little girls and boys, barefooted, walked up and down between the endless rows of spindles, reaching thin little hands into the machinery to repair snapped threads
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There is nothing a worker resents more than to see some man taking his job. A factory can be closed down, its chimneys smokeless, waiting for the worker to come back to his job, and all will be peaceful. But the moment workers are imported, and the striker sees his own place usurped, there is bound to be trouble.
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