Plenary Session on “The Future of the American Labor Movement” Kicks Off the 2008 ASA Meeting

The opening plenary session of the 2008 American Sociological Association Annual Meeting—scheduled for July 31 at 7:30 pm—will feature a discussion on the “Future of the American Labor Movement.” A central focus of the 2008 Annual Meeting theme, “Worlds of Work,” is the role of unions in enhancing the quality of work and in providing workers with a greater voice. This opening plenary session will feature four prominent writers and activists— Marshall Ganz, Steven Greenhouse, Sara Horowitz, and Bruce Raynor—who are at the forefront of thinking and practice regarding the labor movement and its role in reversing the decline in union membership over the last several decades. They are also active in developing strategies that adapt to the new realities of the workplace and labor market.

Boston is home to one of the most important urban black communities in New England, and perhaps the United States. The city’s African American heritage runs long and deep with both the symbolic and actual importance in national black life perhaps beyond proportion to the size of its black population. Below is a brief glimpse of Boston’s African American heritage from colonial times to 1900.

The American Sociological Association has been compiling data on women’s status in the profession for more than four decades. The data in this article continue that tradition by providing information on the changing status of women and men who were regular members of the ASA since the start of the 21st century (between 2001 and 2007). Regular members pay full membership dues, purchase journals, and are eligible to vote in the Association. Full-time faculty members in sociology departments who join ASA do so as regular members.