Why I'm interested in Mother Jones
I first became acquainted with Mother Jones in 1976 when I was chosen to co-author the book West Virginia USA. The other co-author, then Associated Press feature writer Strat Douthat, was given the assignment to write the chapter titled, “Fussin’ and Feudin’.”
Not only did that chapter touch upon the famous feud between the Hatfields and McCoys, it told of a tiny old Irish woman who was, in her day, alternately referred to with reverence or hate as Mother Jones.
Strat’s chapter told only of a small part of her work in West Virginia, but her story was much bigger than that. Across the country, during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Mary Harris Jones faced threats and jail terms, bullets and bombs to defend the American worker — men, women and children — against the greed of robber barons and, more broadly, to defend the promises of democracy from unrestrained capitalism.
She battled injustice and economic servitude from New York and Washington, D.C., across the Midwest to Colorado, up to the Pacific Northwest, and down Mexico way.
Her fight began during the latter years of the Civil War and ended upon her death in 1930 at the height of the Great Depression — an epic of more than 65 years.
She was the counterpoint to the icons of the American Industrial Revolution — Ford, Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan, Vanderbilt and others. These men still stand tall in the history of the United States and the minds of most of its informed citizens, but the significance of Mother Jones is fading fast. Over the past few years, my casual mentions of this writing project largely brought looks of puzzlement. Apologetically my listeners mostly admitted they weren’t sure if they’d ever heard of Mother Jones.
Many fine historians have written tens of thousands of pages on the facts of her life and legacy, but unfortunately these tomes are not in the mainstream of popular books. In the fashion of Mother Jones, I wanted to bring back her message, not just to the few — the historians or history buffs or political wonks among us — but to the most of us, and so I have chosen the historical novel as my framework.
I am also interested in her because having followed the conflict and history of her experiences during the darkest days of the American Industrial Revolution; after gaining a better understanding of the nature of the differences between the motivations and behaviors of business and labor; and between the goals and objectives of capitalism and democracy ... well, I am seeing the America of today in a new light.
History indeed repeats itself. The problems in MoJo’s time are the same and in many ways worse now. Our times call for the return of the spirit of MoJo. In fact, we need lots of Mother Joneses.
Not only did that chapter touch upon the famous feud between the Hatfields and McCoys, it told of a tiny old Irish woman who was, in her day, alternately referred to with reverence or hate as Mother Jones.
Strat’s chapter told only of a small part of her work in West Virginia, but her story was much bigger than that. Across the country, during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Mary Harris Jones faced threats and jail terms, bullets and bombs to defend the American worker — men, women and children — against the greed of robber barons and, more broadly, to defend the promises of democracy from unrestrained capitalism.
She battled injustice and economic servitude from New York and Washington, D.C., across the Midwest to Colorado, up to the Pacific Northwest, and down Mexico way.
Her fight began during the latter years of the Civil War and ended upon her death in 1930 at the height of the Great Depression — an epic of more than 65 years.
She was the counterpoint to the icons of the American Industrial Revolution — Ford, Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan, Vanderbilt and others. These men still stand tall in the history of the United States and the minds of most of its informed citizens, but the significance of Mother Jones is fading fast. Over the past few years, my casual mentions of this writing project largely brought looks of puzzlement. Apologetically my listeners mostly admitted they weren’t sure if they’d ever heard of Mother Jones.
Many fine historians have written tens of thousands of pages on the facts of her life and legacy, but unfortunately these tomes are not in the mainstream of popular books. In the fashion of Mother Jones, I wanted to bring back her message, not just to the few — the historians or history buffs or political wonks among us — but to the most of us, and so I have chosen the historical novel as my framework.
I am also interested in her because having followed the conflict and history of her experiences during the darkest days of the American Industrial Revolution; after gaining a better understanding of the nature of the differences between the motivations and behaviors of business and labor; and between the goals and objectives of capitalism and democracy ... well, I am seeing the America of today in a new light.
History indeed repeats itself. The problems in MoJo’s time are the same and in many ways worse now. Our times call for the return of the spirit of MoJo. In fact, we need lots of Mother Joneses.
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