Collection context
Summary
- Creators:
- Los Angeles J.P. Stevens Boycott Committee
- Abstract:
- The office files of the Los Angeles J. P. Steven Boycott Committee, headed by Michael Linfield and Linda Paquette, document the strategies and activities of the national boycott campaign in Los Angeles against the textile manufacturer in the South, J.P. Stevens & Co., one of the most egregious labor law violators in this country. This grassroots movement with backing from the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union (ACTWU) culminated in a Public Hearing at the L.A. City Council Board of Public Works on June 26, 1979 that barred the company as an "irresponsible bidder" from doing business with the city. In October 1980 J.P. Stevens signed a contract with the ACTWU at the Roanoke Rapids plant.
- Extent:
- 8 letter boxes, 2 legal boxes 3 1/3 linear feet
- Language:
- English.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
The collection represents the office files of the J.P.Stevens Boycott Committee and Labor Committee for Justice for J.P. Stevens in Los Angeles, including letters and memos, copies of legal documents, surveys of department stores holding J.P. Stevens products, files on organizations and religious groups supporting and participating in the boycott, fliers, newspaper clippings and magazine articles, brochures and newsletters, and photographs.
The bulk of the materials are dated between 1976 and 1980; a few research and background items date from 1972 and 1974.
The original order of the files was loosely alphabetical with duplicates of clippings and fliers in many folders. The collection has been extensively re-organized and duplicate items have been removed. The collection is divided into 8 series:1. BOYCOTT COMMITTEE, 2. GOVERNMENT, 3. J.P. STEVENS & CO., 4. ACTWU, 5. STORES, 6. ORGANIZATIONS (incl. UNIONS), 7. RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS, and 8. PHOTOGRPAHS.
- Biographical / historical:
-
The Los Angeles office of the J. P. Stevens Boycott Committee was established in early 1976 by the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union and managed by Michael Linfield and Linda Paquette. (In that year, the Amalgamated Clothing Workers Union of America had merged with the 500,000 members of the Textile Workers Union to form the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union.) Additional support came from the AFL-CIO Labor Committee Workforce which established the Labor Committee for Justice for J. P. Stevens Workers. The Committee supported the boycott with strategy development, publications and staff.
In the 1970s, J. P. Stevens & Co., Inc. was the second largest company in the U.S. textile industry with $ 1,400,000,000 in annual revenues, 45,000 employees and 85 plants. After Word War II, the company closed many of its northern plants and moved to the South, mainly to the Carolinas, in order to avoid unionization. None of the textile mills operated under union contract. From 1963, when the company first attempted to crush a union organization drive, through 1977, the National Labor Relations Board processed over 100 cases of labor violations and grievances for unfair labor practices, health and safety conditions and race and sex discrimination. In October 1980, after 17 years of battling in the courts, through government agencies, on picket lines and with a nationwide boycott, the ACTWU reached a tentative agreement on a contract with J.P.Stevens & Co.
- Acquisition information:
- Los Angeles J.P. Stevens Boycott Committee
Access and use
- Location of this collection:
-
6120 S. Vermont AvenueLos Angeles, CA 90044, US
- Contact:
- (323) 759-6063