JJonahJackalope: Created page
{{Use American English|date=April 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = American League of Colored Laborers
| formation = {{start date|1850|06|13}}
| headquarters = [[New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]], United States
| leader_title = President
| leader_name = [[Samuel Ringgold Ward]]
| leader_title2 = Vice President
| leader_name2 = [[Frederick Douglass]]</br>[[Lewis Woodson]]
| leader_title3 = Secretary
| leader_name3 = [[Henry Bibb]]
}}
The '''American League of Colored Laborers''' was a short-lived [[labor union]] established in [[New York City]] in 1850. It is notable for being the first union created for [[African Americans]] in the United States. Social reformer [[Frederick Douglass]] assisted in organizing the group, which held its first meeting at the [[Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church]] on June 13, 1850. Its initial officers included [[Samuel Ringgold Ward]] as president, Douglass and [[Lewis Woodson]] as vice presidents, and [[Henry Bibb]] as secretary, and during the first meeting, an [[executive committee]] was organized that was composed of several notable social reformers and abolitionists. In addition to union activities, the league was also envisioned to serve as a [[benefit society]] for black tradespeople and entrepreneurs, and to this effect, its leaders planned to establish a [[mutual savings bank]] and hold an [[Trade show|industrial fair]]. Despite these plans, the union faltered shortly after its creation, and it would take until 1869 that the first successful national labor union for African Americans, the [[Colored National Labor Union]], was formed.
== History ==
=== Background ===
In the pre-[[American Civil War|Civil War]] era, many [[free black]] workers in the United States faced economic competition from both native-born [[white Americans]] and European immigrants, including [[Irish Americans]].{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}} Additionally, [[African Americans]] were barred access to many [[labor union]]s, which only admitted [[White people|white]] members.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Pearson|2005|p=849}} As a result of this, many African Americans formed [[mutual organization]]s and [[Benefit society|benevolent societies]] in order to assist each other economically.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Foner|1976|pp=10–11}}{{sfn|Hill|1980|p=506}}{{sfn|Pearson|2005|p=849}} Examples of these organizations include the Coachman's Benevolent Society (established 1825) and the Humane Mechanics (1828) in [[Philadelphia]], the Baltimore Caulker's Association (1838) in [[Baltimore]], and the Colored Sailor's Home (1839) in [[New York City]].{{sfn|Ernest|2011|p=43}} According to historian Gerald D. Jaynes in the ''Encyclopedia of African American Society'', these organizations can be considered "forerunners" or "predecessors" to labor unions,{{sfn|Jaynes|2005|p=491}} while [[Labor history|labor historian]] [[Philip S. Foner]] stated that these groups "resembled [[Fraternal order|fraternal lodges]] more than trade unions".{{sfn|Foner|1976|pp=10–11}}
=== Formation ===
[[File:Samuel Ringgold Ward.jpg|thumb|[[Samuel Ringgold Ward]] (pictured {{Circa|1855}}) served as the union's first president.]]
On June 13, 1850,{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} in response to the difficulties faced by African Americans in joining existing labor unions and as part of a wave of efforts towards black economic self-sufficiency and cooperation,{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}}{{sfn|Kelly|2019}} several noted social reformers and black activists met at the [[Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church]] at the intersection of Leonard Street and [[Church Street and Trinity Place|Church Street]] to establish the American League of Colored Laborers (ALCL).{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} The national organization would represent [[Freedman|free]] African Americans who were employed in [[skilled trades]],{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=219}} such as [[mechanic]]s,{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=41}} and it is considered by historian [[Lerone Bennett Jr.]] to be the first labor union established for black people in American history.{{refn|group=note|In a 1972 article for ''[[Ebony (magazine)|Ebony]]'', [[African-American history|African-American historian]] [[Lerone Bennett Jr.]] called the organization "the first black labor union",{{sfn|Bennett|1972|p=154}} a claim repeated in several 2010s articles on [[BlackPast.org]].{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Mealey|2012}} Other sources are less definitive with regards to whether the ALCL was the first black labor union in the United States. Labor journlist [[Kim Kelly (journalist)|Kim Kelly]] stated in a 2019 publication that the ALCL was "one of the country's first black labor unions",{{sfn|Kelly|2019}} while a 2023 article in the ''Louisville Political Review'' stated that it was "[p]ossibly the first Black labor union".{{sfn|Fridy|2023}} A 2022 article on [[NewsOne.com]] states, "Some historians believe that the American League of Color Laborers was the first African American labor union to form".{{sfn|Dawson|2022}}}} Social reformer [[Frederick Douglass]] was instrumental in establishing the organization,{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Kelly|2019}}{{sfn|Dawson|2022}} alongside other noted reformers and activists of the era, such as [[George T. Downing]],{{sfn|Alexander|2015a|p=181}} [[Charles Bennett Ray]],{{sfn|Alexander|2015b|p=449}} [[Charles L. Reason]],{{sfn|Alexander|2015c|p=452}} [[James McCune Smith]],{{sfn|Alexander|2012|pp=212, 215}} and [[Samuel Ringgold Ward]].{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}} At the initial meeting, officers for the new group were selected, with Ward as president, Douglass as vice president (a position he shared with [[Lewis Woodson]]),{{sfn|Walker|1997|p=314}} and [[Henry Bibb]] as secretary.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} Additionally, an [[executive committee]] of 23 members was selected,{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=264}} with plans for this group to meet monthly to discuss league business.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=41}} Douglass's involvement with the organization, as well as the participation of several editors from [[African American newspapers]], helped the union to garner fairly widespread coverage in the black press.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}
=== Goals ===
Despite being a labor union, the league had goals that differentiated it from more traditional organized labor groups.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} In addition to its goal of promoting unity and cooperation among black mechanics and tradespeople,{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Foner|1976|p=11}} the union placed a great deal of emphasis on promoting more educational opportunities within the African American community, primarily in the fields of agriculture and industry.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Alexander|2012|pp=212, 215}}{{sfn|Foner|1976|p=11}} Douglass and Ward also envisioned that the league would eventually serve as a [[loan]]-giving organization for African American [[entrepreneurs]],{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}} and starting with their initial meeting, the union announced plans to establish funds to provide money for people trying to open their own businesses.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=263}} At an 1851 meeting, the union proposed the establishment of a [[mutual savings bank]].{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}}{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} Additionally, the union planned to hold an [[Trade show|industrial fair]] in May 1852 to showcase black industry, with the proceeds from the fair being split between the tradespeople and the union.{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=263}}{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{refn|group=note|The tradespeople would receive 70 percent of the proceeds, while the union would keep the remainder.{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=263}}{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}}} These goals have led several historians to question how to properly categorize the league.{{refn|group=note|Regarding the league, labor historian [[Philip S. Foner]] wrote in his 1974 book ''Organized Labor and the Black Worker'', "Clearly, the league was interested in industrial education rather than trade-union activity; moreover, its orientation was toward the self-employed artisan".{{sfn|Foner|1976|p=11}} Historian Brian Greenberg expressed similar sentiments in a 2018 book.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}} Historian Stuart McElderry wrote in ''Organizing Black America: An Encyclopedia of African American Associations'' (2001) that the league "was also intended as a mutual benefit society".{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}}}}
=== Demise ===
Ultimately, the planned 1852 industrial fair never took place.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=239}} Ultimately, the ALCL was a short-lived organization,{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}} with historian John Ernest writing in 2011 that the league disbanded shortly after its initial meeting and historian Stuart McElderry saying it "ceased to exist during the later half of the 1800s".{{sfn|Ernest|2011|p=43}}{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} Multiple reasons have been given for the league's downfall, with many historians noting that one of the largest issues facing the union was the small number of black artisans working in cities at the time.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} The league additionally suffered from the growth of white-only [[craft unions]] and increased European immigration that stifled the development of black industry,{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} and McElderry additionally cites "poor leadership and internal disputes" within the organization.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} Historian Leslie M. Harris wrote in 2003 regarding the union, "The group united reformers who held varying views regarding ways to assist black workers, but does not seem to have attracted any workers".{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=239}} Ultimately, the union's demise was typical for black economic cooperative organizations of the era, as almost all such groups during this time were short-lived.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42|loc="Despite its ambitious goals and prominent leadership, the ALCL suffered the same fate as nearly every other nineteenth-century African American labor organization"}}{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193|loc="Nearly all of these efforts failed in the long run, however, defeated by the wrath of hostile whites or the dearth of resources in black communities"}} Multiple historians have noted that the league's demise could be viewed as indicative of a growing [[class divide]] between the workers and the social reformers in the African American community during this time.{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=219|loc="The failure of these efforts reveals the growing class separation, despite the ties of race, between black workers and black reformers"}}{{sfn|Ernest|2011|p=43|loc="Many antebellum organizations were devoted to uplift—a cause that often revealed deep divisions between the developing black middle class and the working class, between African Americans who claimed leadership and representative status and those who confronted daily the harshest conditions of black life in the workplace and in racially and economically segregated neighborhoods"}}
=== Later African American unionization efforts ===
In the years following the ALCL's demise, unionization efforts continued among African Americans, in particular among [[longshoremen]] in port cities such as [[Charleston, South Carolina]], and [[New Orleans]].{{sfn|Bennett|1972|p=154}} In 1869, the [[Knights of Labor]] became the first white union to allow black people to join, though the union offered little support to its black members, as demonstrated in the events leading up to the [[Thibodaux massacre]].{{sfn|Jaynes|2005|p=491}} Also in 1869, black activists met in [[Washington, D.C.]], in a conference that eventually led to the creation of the [[Colored National Labor Union]], which Bennett cites as "[t]he first major national effort" towards a black nationwide union.{{sfn|Bennett|1972|p=154}} Douglass would later serve as president of this union.{{sfn|Hill|1980|p=506}} As of 2019, the [[Coalition of Black Trade Unionists]] represents the interests of many African American union members in over 50 different unions, with labor journalist [[Kim Kelly (journalist)|Kim Kelly]] calling the group "a bridge between the labor movement and the black community".{{sfn|Kelly|2019}}
== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=note}}
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
== Sources ==
{{refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E73iOQSkHdwC |title=African Or American?: Black Identity and Political Activism in New York City, 1784-1861 |publisher=[[University of Illinois Press]] |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-252-07853-8 |edition=First Illinois paperback |location=Champaign, Illinois |orig-date=2008}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXysBwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2015a |isbn=978-1-317-47180-6 |editor-last=Rodriguez |editor-first=Junius |editor-link=Junius P. Rodriguez |edition=Routledge |volume=1 |location=New York City |pages=180–181 |chapter=Downing, George Thomas (1819–1903) |orig-date=2007}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXysBwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2015b |isbn=978-1-317-47180-6 |editor-last=Rodriguez |editor-first=Junius |editor-link=Junius P. Rodriguez |edition=Routledge |volume=2 |location=New York City |pages=448–449 |chapter=Ray, Charles B. (1807–1886) |orig-date=2007}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXysBwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2015c |isbn=978-1-317-47180-6 |editor-last=Rodriguez |editor-first=Junius |editor-link=Junius P. Rodriguez |edition=Routledge |volume=2 |location=New York City |pages=451–452 |chapter=Reason, Charles L. (1818–1893) |orig-date=2007}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Bennett |first=Lerone Jr. |author-link=Lerone Bennett Jr. |date=November 1972 |editor-last=Johnson |editor-first=John H. |editor-link=John H. Johnson |title=The Making of Black America: The Black Worker |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ntcDAAAAMBAJ |journal=[[Ebony (magazine)|Ebony]] |location=Chicago |publisher=[[Johnson Publishing Company]] |volume=XXVIII |issue=1 |pages=150–154, 158, 160, 162}}
* {{Cite web |last=Bradley |first=Jonathan |date=January 4, 2011 |title=American League of Colored Laborers (1850-?) |url=https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/american-league-colored-laborers-1850/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2024020...istory/american-league-colored-laborers-1850/ |archive-date=February 5, 2024 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[BlackPast.org]]}}
* {{Cite web |last=Dawson |first=Shannon |date=September 5, 2022 |title=5 Black-Led Labor Unions That Have Paved The Way For Black Workers' Rights |url=https://newsone.com/playlist/5-black-labor-unions/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231201234850/https://newsone.com/playlist/5-black-labor-unions/ |archive-date=December 1, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[NewsOne]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ernest |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UNsfpqx2rI4C |title=A Nation Within a Nation: Organizing African-American Communities Before the Civil War |publisher=[[Ivan R. Dee]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-56663-917-0 |series=The American Ways Series |location=Chicago}}
* {{Cite book |last=Foner |first=Philip S. |author-link=Philip S. Foner |url=http://archive.org/details/organizedlaborbl00inte |title=Organized Labor and the Black Worker, 1619–1973 |publisher=[[International Publishers]] |year=1976 |isbn=978-0-7178-0475-7 |edition=First paperback |location=New York City |orig-date=1974}}
* {{Cite web |last=Fridy |first=Emma |date=February 10, 2023 |title=A Short History of Black Labor Movements in America |url=https://loupolitical.org/2023/02/10/a-short-history-of-black-labor-movements-in-america/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2023033...-history-of-black-labor-movements-in-america/ |archive-date=March 31, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=Louisville Political Review}}
* {{Cite book |last=Greenberg |first=Brian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QkkzDwAAQBAJ |title=The Dawning of American Labor: The New Republic to the Industrial Age |publisher=[[John Wiley & Sons]] |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-119-06570-8 |series=The American History Series |location=Hoboken, New Jersey}}
* {{Cite book |last=Harris |first=Leslie M. |author-link=Leslie M. Harris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1imRT1Nr22YC |title=In the Shadow of Slavery: African Americans in New York City, 1626–1863 |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-226-31774-8 |location=Chicago}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Hill |first=Herbert |author-link=Herbert Hill (labor director) |date=December 1980 |editor-last=Marr |editor-first=Warren II |title=Black Labor and the NAACP |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PSoEAAAAMBAJ |journal=[[The Crisis]] |location=New York City |publisher=[[NAACP]] |volume=87 |issue=10 |pages=506–511}}
* {{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UZx2AwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of African American Society |publisher=[[SAGE Publications]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-4522-6541-4 |editor-last=Jaynes |editor-first=Gerald D. |location=Thousand Oaks, California |pages=491–494 |chapter=Labor Movement}}
* {{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Kim |author-link=Kim Kelly (journalist) |date=February 7, 2019 |title=How Black Activists Shaped the Labor Movement |url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/black-activists-shaped-the-labor-movement |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2024022...ory/black-activists-shaped-the-labor-movement |archive-date=February 28, 2024 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[Teen Vogue]] |publisher=[[Condé Nast]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=McElderry |first=Stuart |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=56KH2aisL_UC |title=Organizing Black America: An Encyclopedia of African American Associations |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-135-58123-7 |editor-last=Mjagkij |editor-first=Nina |edition=Taylor & Francis e-Library |location=New York City |pages=41–42 |chapter=American League of Colored Laborers |orig-date=2001}}
* {{Cite web |last=Mealey |first=Rich |date=March 29, 2012 |title=Stephen Myers (1800-1870) |url=https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/myers-stephen-1800-1870/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2023120...can-american-history/myers-stephen-1800-1870/ |archive-date=December 9, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[BlackPast.org]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Nell |first=William Cooper |author-link=William Cooper Nell |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xRe7QTtXaFcC |title=William Cooper Nell, Nineteenth-century African American Abolitionist, Historian, Integrationist: Selected Writings from 1832–1874 |publisher=[[Black Classic Press]] |year=2002 |isbn=978-1-57478-019-2 |editor-last=Wesley |editor-first=Dorothy Porter |editor-link=Dorothy B. Porter |location=Baltimore |pages=263–264 |chapter=American League of Colored Laborers |editor-last2=Uzelac |editor-first2=Constance Porter}}
* {{Cite book |last=Pearson |first=Chad |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmHEm5ohoCUC |title=The Encyclopedia of New York State |publisher=[[Syracuse University Press]] |others=Foreword by Carole F. Huxley |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-8156-0808-0 |editor-last=Eisenstadt |editor-first=Peter |edition=First |location=Syracuse, New York |pages=848–852 |chapter=Labor |editor-last2=Moss |editor-first2=Laura-Eve}}
* {{Cite book |last=Rael |first=Patrick |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CZRBpRJzR9QC |title=Black Identity & Black Protest in the Antebellum North |publisher=[[University of North Carolina Press]] |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-8078-7503-2 |location=Chapel Hill, North Carolina}}
* {{Cite book |last=Walker |first=Juliet E. K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H_cFvm7BAxsC |title=A Different Vision: Race and Public Policy |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-415-12716-5 |editor-last=Boston |editor-first=Thomas D. |editor-link=Thomas D. Boston |volume=2 |location=New York City |pages=280–320 |chapter=Promoting Black Entrepreneurship and Business Enterprise in Antebellum America: The National Negro Convention, 1830–60}}
{{refend}}
== Further reading ==
* {{Cite web |last=Chandler |first=D. L. |date=September 1, 2014 |title=Little Known Black History Fact: The First Black Labor Union |url=https://blackamericaweb.com/2014/09/01/little-known-black-history-fact-the-first-black-labor-union/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2023121...ack-history-fact-the-first-black-labor-union/ |archive-date=December 15, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[BlackAmericaWeb.com]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Trotter |first=Joe William Jr. |author-link=Joe William Trotter Jr. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IjgHEAAAQBAJ |title=Workers on Arrival: Black Labor in the Making of America |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |year=2021 |isbn=978-0-520-37751-6 |edition=First paperback |location=Oakland, California |orig-date=2019}}
[[Category:1850 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:African-American trade unions]]
[[Category
efunct trade unions in the United States]]
[[Category:Frederick Douglass]]
[[Category:History of labor relations in the United States]]
[[Categoryre-emancipation African-American history]]
[[Category:Trade unions in New York (state)]]
Okumaya devam et...
{{Use American English|date=April 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = American League of Colored Laborers
| formation = {{start date|1850|06|13}}
| headquarters = [[New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]], United States
| leader_title = President
| leader_name = [[Samuel Ringgold Ward]]
| leader_title2 = Vice President
| leader_name2 = [[Frederick Douglass]]</br>[[Lewis Woodson]]
| leader_title3 = Secretary
| leader_name3 = [[Henry Bibb]]
}}
The '''American League of Colored Laborers''' was a short-lived [[labor union]] established in [[New York City]] in 1850. It is notable for being the first union created for [[African Americans]] in the United States. Social reformer [[Frederick Douglass]] assisted in organizing the group, which held its first meeting at the [[Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church]] on June 13, 1850. Its initial officers included [[Samuel Ringgold Ward]] as president, Douglass and [[Lewis Woodson]] as vice presidents, and [[Henry Bibb]] as secretary, and during the first meeting, an [[executive committee]] was organized that was composed of several notable social reformers and abolitionists. In addition to union activities, the league was also envisioned to serve as a [[benefit society]] for black tradespeople and entrepreneurs, and to this effect, its leaders planned to establish a [[mutual savings bank]] and hold an [[Trade show|industrial fair]]. Despite these plans, the union faltered shortly after its creation, and it would take until 1869 that the first successful national labor union for African Americans, the [[Colored National Labor Union]], was formed.
== History ==
=== Background ===
In the pre-[[American Civil War|Civil War]] era, many [[free black]] workers in the United States faced economic competition from both native-born [[white Americans]] and European immigrants, including [[Irish Americans]].{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}} Additionally, [[African Americans]] were barred access to many [[labor union]]s, which only admitted [[White people|white]] members.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Pearson|2005|p=849}} As a result of this, many African Americans formed [[mutual organization]]s and [[Benefit society|benevolent societies]] in order to assist each other economically.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Foner|1976|pp=10–11}}{{sfn|Hill|1980|p=506}}{{sfn|Pearson|2005|p=849}} Examples of these organizations include the Coachman's Benevolent Society (established 1825) and the Humane Mechanics (1828) in [[Philadelphia]], the Baltimore Caulker's Association (1838) in [[Baltimore]], and the Colored Sailor's Home (1839) in [[New York City]].{{sfn|Ernest|2011|p=43}} According to historian Gerald D. Jaynes in the ''Encyclopedia of African American Society'', these organizations can be considered "forerunners" or "predecessors" to labor unions,{{sfn|Jaynes|2005|p=491}} while [[Labor history|labor historian]] [[Philip S. Foner]] stated that these groups "resembled [[Fraternal order|fraternal lodges]] more than trade unions".{{sfn|Foner|1976|pp=10–11}}
=== Formation ===
[[File:Samuel Ringgold Ward.jpg|thumb|[[Samuel Ringgold Ward]] (pictured {{Circa|1855}}) served as the union's first president.]]
On June 13, 1850,{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} in response to the difficulties faced by African Americans in joining existing labor unions and as part of a wave of efforts towards black economic self-sufficiency and cooperation,{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}}{{sfn|Kelly|2019}} several noted social reformers and black activists met at the [[Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church]] at the intersection of Leonard Street and [[Church Street and Trinity Place|Church Street]] to establish the American League of Colored Laborers (ALCL).{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} The national organization would represent [[Freedman|free]] African Americans who were employed in [[skilled trades]],{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=219}} such as [[mechanic]]s,{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=41}} and it is considered by historian [[Lerone Bennett Jr.]] to be the first labor union established for black people in American history.{{refn|group=note|In a 1972 article for ''[[Ebony (magazine)|Ebony]]'', [[African-American history|African-American historian]] [[Lerone Bennett Jr.]] called the organization "the first black labor union",{{sfn|Bennett|1972|p=154}} a claim repeated in several 2010s articles on [[BlackPast.org]].{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Mealey|2012}} Other sources are less definitive with regards to whether the ALCL was the first black labor union in the United States. Labor journlist [[Kim Kelly (journalist)|Kim Kelly]] stated in a 2019 publication that the ALCL was "one of the country's first black labor unions",{{sfn|Kelly|2019}} while a 2023 article in the ''Louisville Political Review'' stated that it was "[p]ossibly the first Black labor union".{{sfn|Fridy|2023}} A 2022 article on [[NewsOne.com]] states, "Some historians believe that the American League of Color Laborers was the first African American labor union to form".{{sfn|Dawson|2022}}}} Social reformer [[Frederick Douglass]] was instrumental in establishing the organization,{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Kelly|2019}}{{sfn|Dawson|2022}} alongside other noted reformers and activists of the era, such as [[George T. Downing]],{{sfn|Alexander|2015a|p=181}} [[Charles Bennett Ray]],{{sfn|Alexander|2015b|p=449}} [[Charles L. Reason]],{{sfn|Alexander|2015c|p=452}} [[James McCune Smith]],{{sfn|Alexander|2012|pp=212, 215}} and [[Samuel Ringgold Ward]].{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}} At the initial meeting, officers for the new group were selected, with Ward as president, Douglass as vice president (a position he shared with [[Lewis Woodson]]),{{sfn|Walker|1997|p=314}} and [[Henry Bibb]] as secretary.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} Additionally, an [[executive committee]] of 23 members was selected,{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=264}} with plans for this group to meet monthly to discuss league business.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=41}} Douglass's involvement with the organization, as well as the participation of several editors from [[African American newspapers]], helped the union to garner fairly widespread coverage in the black press.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}
=== Goals ===
Despite being a labor union, the league had goals that differentiated it from more traditional organized labor groups.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} In addition to its goal of promoting unity and cooperation among black mechanics and tradespeople,{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Foner|1976|p=11}} the union placed a great deal of emphasis on promoting more educational opportunities within the African American community, primarily in the fields of agriculture and industry.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}}{{sfn|Alexander|2012|pp=212, 215}}{{sfn|Foner|1976|p=11}} Douglass and Ward also envisioned that the league would eventually serve as a [[loan]]-giving organization for African American [[entrepreneurs]],{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}} and starting with their initial meeting, the union announced plans to establish funds to provide money for people trying to open their own businesses.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=263}} At an 1851 meeting, the union proposed the establishment of a [[mutual savings bank]].{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}}{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} Additionally, the union planned to hold an [[Trade show|industrial fair]] in May 1852 to showcase black industry, with the proceeds from the fair being split between the tradespeople and the union.{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=263}}{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{refn|group=note|The tradespeople would receive 70 percent of the proceeds, while the union would keep the remainder.{{sfn|Nell|2002|p=263}}{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}}} These goals have led several historians to question how to properly categorize the league.{{refn|group=note|Regarding the league, labor historian [[Philip S. Foner]] wrote in his 1974 book ''Organized Labor and the Black Worker'', "Clearly, the league was interested in industrial education rather than trade-union activity; moreover, its orientation was toward the self-employed artisan".{{sfn|Foner|1976|p=11}} Historian Brian Greenberg expressed similar sentiments in a 2018 book.{{sfn|Greenberg|2018|p=120}} Historian Stuart McElderry wrote in ''Organizing Black America: An Encyclopedia of African American Associations'' (2001) that the league "was also intended as a mutual benefit society".{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}}}}
=== Demise ===
Ultimately, the planned 1852 industrial fair never took place.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=239}} Ultimately, the ALCL was a short-lived organization,{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193}} with historian John Ernest writing in 2011 that the league disbanded shortly after its initial meeting and historian Stuart McElderry saying it "ceased to exist during the later half of the 1800s".{{sfn|Ernest|2011|p=43}}{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} Multiple reasons have been given for the league's downfall, with many historians noting that one of the largest issues facing the union was the small number of black artisans working in cities at the time.{{sfn|Bradley|2011}}{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} The league additionally suffered from the growth of white-only [[craft unions]] and increased European immigration that stifled the development of black industry,{{sfn|Bradley|2011}} and McElderry additionally cites "poor leadership and internal disputes" within the organization.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42}} Historian Leslie M. Harris wrote in 2003 regarding the union, "The group united reformers who held varying views regarding ways to assist black workers, but does not seem to have attracted any workers".{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=239}} Ultimately, the union's demise was typical for black economic cooperative organizations of the era, as almost all such groups during this time were short-lived.{{sfn|McElderry|2005|p=42|loc="Despite its ambitious goals and prominent leadership, the ALCL suffered the same fate as nearly every other nineteenth-century African American labor organization"}}{{sfn|Rael|2002|p=193|loc="Nearly all of these efforts failed in the long run, however, defeated by the wrath of hostile whites or the dearth of resources in black communities"}} Multiple historians have noted that the league's demise could be viewed as indicative of a growing [[class divide]] between the workers and the social reformers in the African American community during this time.{{sfn|Harris|2003|p=219|loc="The failure of these efforts reveals the growing class separation, despite the ties of race, between black workers and black reformers"}}{{sfn|Ernest|2011|p=43|loc="Many antebellum organizations were devoted to uplift—a cause that often revealed deep divisions between the developing black middle class and the working class, between African Americans who claimed leadership and representative status and those who confronted daily the harshest conditions of black life in the workplace and in racially and economically segregated neighborhoods"}}
=== Later African American unionization efforts ===
In the years following the ALCL's demise, unionization efforts continued among African Americans, in particular among [[longshoremen]] in port cities such as [[Charleston, South Carolina]], and [[New Orleans]].{{sfn|Bennett|1972|p=154}} In 1869, the [[Knights of Labor]] became the first white union to allow black people to join, though the union offered little support to its black members, as demonstrated in the events leading up to the [[Thibodaux massacre]].{{sfn|Jaynes|2005|p=491}} Also in 1869, black activists met in [[Washington, D.C.]], in a conference that eventually led to the creation of the [[Colored National Labor Union]], which Bennett cites as "[t]he first major national effort" towards a black nationwide union.{{sfn|Bennett|1972|p=154}} Douglass would later serve as president of this union.{{sfn|Hill|1980|p=506}} As of 2019, the [[Coalition of Black Trade Unionists]] represents the interests of many African American union members in over 50 different unions, with labor journalist [[Kim Kelly (journalist)|Kim Kelly]] calling the group "a bridge between the labor movement and the black community".{{sfn|Kelly|2019}}
== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=note}}
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
== Sources ==
{{refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E73iOQSkHdwC |title=African Or American?: Black Identity and Political Activism in New York City, 1784-1861 |publisher=[[University of Illinois Press]] |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-252-07853-8 |edition=First Illinois paperback |location=Champaign, Illinois |orig-date=2008}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXysBwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2015a |isbn=978-1-317-47180-6 |editor-last=Rodriguez |editor-first=Junius |editor-link=Junius P. Rodriguez |edition=Routledge |volume=1 |location=New York City |pages=180–181 |chapter=Downing, George Thomas (1819–1903) |orig-date=2007}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXysBwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2015b |isbn=978-1-317-47180-6 |editor-last=Rodriguez |editor-first=Junius |editor-link=Junius P. Rodriguez |edition=Routledge |volume=2 |location=New York City |pages=448–449 |chapter=Ray, Charles B. (1807–1886) |orig-date=2007}}
* {{Cite book |last=Alexander |first=Leslie M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXysBwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2015c |isbn=978-1-317-47180-6 |editor-last=Rodriguez |editor-first=Junius |editor-link=Junius P. Rodriguez |edition=Routledge |volume=2 |location=New York City |pages=451–452 |chapter=Reason, Charles L. (1818–1893) |orig-date=2007}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Bennett |first=Lerone Jr. |author-link=Lerone Bennett Jr. |date=November 1972 |editor-last=Johnson |editor-first=John H. |editor-link=John H. Johnson |title=The Making of Black America: The Black Worker |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ntcDAAAAMBAJ |journal=[[Ebony (magazine)|Ebony]] |location=Chicago |publisher=[[Johnson Publishing Company]] |volume=XXVIII |issue=1 |pages=150–154, 158, 160, 162}}
* {{Cite web |last=Bradley |first=Jonathan |date=January 4, 2011 |title=American League of Colored Laborers (1850-?) |url=https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/american-league-colored-laborers-1850/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2024020...istory/american-league-colored-laborers-1850/ |archive-date=February 5, 2024 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[BlackPast.org]]}}
* {{Cite web |last=Dawson |first=Shannon |date=September 5, 2022 |title=5 Black-Led Labor Unions That Have Paved The Way For Black Workers' Rights |url=https://newsone.com/playlist/5-black-labor-unions/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231201234850/https://newsone.com/playlist/5-black-labor-unions/ |archive-date=December 1, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[NewsOne]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ernest |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UNsfpqx2rI4C |title=A Nation Within a Nation: Organizing African-American Communities Before the Civil War |publisher=[[Ivan R. Dee]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-56663-917-0 |series=The American Ways Series |location=Chicago}}
* {{Cite book |last=Foner |first=Philip S. |author-link=Philip S. Foner |url=http://archive.org/details/organizedlaborbl00inte |title=Organized Labor and the Black Worker, 1619–1973 |publisher=[[International Publishers]] |year=1976 |isbn=978-0-7178-0475-7 |edition=First paperback |location=New York City |orig-date=1974}}
* {{Cite web |last=Fridy |first=Emma |date=February 10, 2023 |title=A Short History of Black Labor Movements in America |url=https://loupolitical.org/2023/02/10/a-short-history-of-black-labor-movements-in-america/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2023033...-history-of-black-labor-movements-in-america/ |archive-date=March 31, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=Louisville Political Review}}
* {{Cite book |last=Greenberg |first=Brian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QkkzDwAAQBAJ |title=The Dawning of American Labor: The New Republic to the Industrial Age |publisher=[[John Wiley & Sons]] |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-119-06570-8 |series=The American History Series |location=Hoboken, New Jersey}}
* {{Cite book |last=Harris |first=Leslie M. |author-link=Leslie M. Harris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1imRT1Nr22YC |title=In the Shadow of Slavery: African Americans in New York City, 1626–1863 |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-226-31774-8 |location=Chicago}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Hill |first=Herbert |author-link=Herbert Hill (labor director) |date=December 1980 |editor-last=Marr |editor-first=Warren II |title=Black Labor and the NAACP |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PSoEAAAAMBAJ |journal=[[The Crisis]] |location=New York City |publisher=[[NAACP]] |volume=87 |issue=10 |pages=506–511}}
* {{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UZx2AwAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of African American Society |publisher=[[SAGE Publications]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-4522-6541-4 |editor-last=Jaynes |editor-first=Gerald D. |location=Thousand Oaks, California |pages=491–494 |chapter=Labor Movement}}
* {{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Kim |author-link=Kim Kelly (journalist) |date=February 7, 2019 |title=How Black Activists Shaped the Labor Movement |url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/black-activists-shaped-the-labor-movement |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2024022...ory/black-activists-shaped-the-labor-movement |archive-date=February 28, 2024 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[Teen Vogue]] |publisher=[[Condé Nast]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=McElderry |first=Stuart |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=56KH2aisL_UC |title=Organizing Black America: An Encyclopedia of African American Associations |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-135-58123-7 |editor-last=Mjagkij |editor-first=Nina |edition=Taylor & Francis e-Library |location=New York City |pages=41–42 |chapter=American League of Colored Laborers |orig-date=2001}}
* {{Cite web |last=Mealey |first=Rich |date=March 29, 2012 |title=Stephen Myers (1800-1870) |url=https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/myers-stephen-1800-1870/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2023120...can-american-history/myers-stephen-1800-1870/ |archive-date=December 9, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[BlackPast.org]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Nell |first=William Cooper |author-link=William Cooper Nell |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xRe7QTtXaFcC |title=William Cooper Nell, Nineteenth-century African American Abolitionist, Historian, Integrationist: Selected Writings from 1832–1874 |publisher=[[Black Classic Press]] |year=2002 |isbn=978-1-57478-019-2 |editor-last=Wesley |editor-first=Dorothy Porter |editor-link=Dorothy B. Porter |location=Baltimore |pages=263–264 |chapter=American League of Colored Laborers |editor-last2=Uzelac |editor-first2=Constance Porter}}
* {{Cite book |last=Pearson |first=Chad |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmHEm5ohoCUC |title=The Encyclopedia of New York State |publisher=[[Syracuse University Press]] |others=Foreword by Carole F. Huxley |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-8156-0808-0 |editor-last=Eisenstadt |editor-first=Peter |edition=First |location=Syracuse, New York |pages=848–852 |chapter=Labor |editor-last2=Moss |editor-first2=Laura-Eve}}
* {{Cite book |last=Rael |first=Patrick |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CZRBpRJzR9QC |title=Black Identity & Black Protest in the Antebellum North |publisher=[[University of North Carolina Press]] |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-8078-7503-2 |location=Chapel Hill, North Carolina}}
* {{Cite book |last=Walker |first=Juliet E. K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H_cFvm7BAxsC |title=A Different Vision: Race and Public Policy |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-415-12716-5 |editor-last=Boston |editor-first=Thomas D. |editor-link=Thomas D. Boston |volume=2 |location=New York City |pages=280–320 |chapter=Promoting Black Entrepreneurship and Business Enterprise in Antebellum America: The National Negro Convention, 1830–60}}
{{refend}}
== Further reading ==
* {{Cite web |last=Chandler |first=D. L. |date=September 1, 2014 |title=Little Known Black History Fact: The First Black Labor Union |url=https://blackamericaweb.com/2014/09/01/little-known-black-history-fact-the-first-black-labor-union/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/2023121...ack-history-fact-the-first-black-labor-union/ |archive-date=December 15, 2023 |access-date=April 26, 2024 |website=[[BlackAmericaWeb.com]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Trotter |first=Joe William Jr. |author-link=Joe William Trotter Jr. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IjgHEAAAQBAJ |title=Workers on Arrival: Black Labor in the Making of America |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |year=2021 |isbn=978-0-520-37751-6 |edition=First paperback |location=Oakland, California |orig-date=2019}}
[[Category:1850 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:African-American trade unions]]
[[Category
efunct trade unions in the United States]][[Category:Frederick Douglass]]
[[Category:History of labor relations in the United States]]
[[Category
re-emancipation African-American history]][[Category:Trade unions in New York (state)]]
Okumaya devam et...