Labor and community organizing in New Orleans

The Deep South has a reputation for hostility towards organized labor. But despite this, New Orleans has a long tradition of union organizing. The city’s teachers' union was the first integrated education union in the South. And the first integrated American Federation of Labor shop was likely the streetcar workers in New Orleans. In 1892, the city held a successful general strike which included workers from different racial backgrounds and won concessions for unionized shops, overtime pay, and a 10-hour work day. While Hurricane Katrina, the BP oil spill, and the Great Recession have pummelled the city, some residents are forming cross-cultural alliances to promote better living and working conditions. Zoe Zullivan reports.